April 08, 2003
Costumes Grotesques
There follows a selection of images from a series entitled Les Costumes Grotesques: Habits des métiers et professions…
They were published in 1695 by one Nicolas de Larmessin, although I’m not exactly sure which Nicolas was responsible for them, as there seem to have been four generations of Nicolases in the de Larmessin family.
Although Nicolas II (d. ca. 1694) or III (d. ca. 1725) would seem the likeliest suspects.
These light-hearted images seem to carry just a faint aftertaste of Arcimboldo’s grotesques.
Unusually for a series of late 17th century prints, they seem to be widely-available in poster form. I lifted the present images from the allposters site.
