Paintings, Drawings, Sculpture

Maurice Denis french, 1870 – 1943 . Whoever Follows Me Does Not Walk in Darkness ( Celui qui me suit ne marche pas dans les ténèbres )

c. 1903 Oil on paperboard 11½ x 9 ¼ inches ( 29 . 5 x 23 . 7 cm) Estate stamp lower left

provenance Family of the artist Private Collection, Paris. related literature Thomas à Kempis. Imitation of Christ . Paris: Ambroise Vollard, 1903 , Book 1 , Chapter 1 (John, ch. VIII, v. 12 ), p. 3 , fig 1 . This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity by Claire Denis, dated January 14 , 2017 with a catalogue raisonné number 903 . 0070 . From 1899 to 1911 Denis focused on the graphic arts, producing woodcuts and lithographs, often published as book illustrations. In 1893 , the renowned art dealer Ambroise Vollard hired Denis to create illustrations for a proposed publication of L’Imitation de Jesus Christ by Thomas à Kempis. Written circa 1418 – 1427 , The Imitation of Christ was considered, and continues to be regarded as the most important devotional work in Catholic Christianity and the most widely read devotional work next to the Bible. While working on this project ( 1893 – 1899 ), Denis produced no less than 216 drawn illustrations. The final works would be engraved by Le Syndicat des graveurs sur bois (The Guild of Woodblock Engravers)