CHARLES RAMBERT (1867-1932)
69
●
GRANDE SEMAINE D’AVIATION / ROUEN. 1910.
51
1
/
4
x35
1
/
2
inches, 130
1
/
4
x90
1
/
4
cm. Girieud, Rouen.
Condition B+: restored margins in upper right corner; repaired tears in margins; abrasions in image.
A mere 7 years after the Wright Brothers took to the air, “a rash of aviation meetings broke out in the
spring of 1910 in places as diverse as Saint Petersburg, Vienna, Budapest, Bournemouth, Boston,
Lanark and New York City” (Villard / Allen p. 57), as well as Rouen. “The beauty, originality, and sly
humor of the artist’s design [make this poster] a memorable work of art. Flying past the spires of the
cathedral, then under repair, the pilot of a sprightly though improbable-looking monoplane cheerfully
salutes two ecclesiastical statues in a niche who throw up their hands in amazement at the miracle of
human flight” (Villard / Allen p. 59). In a curious instance of life imitating art, one of the more
memorable moments of the event was when Leon Morane “caused a sensation by flying around the
venerable cathedral in the heart of the city” (ibid). Villard / Allen pl. 37, l’Histoire de l’Aviation p. 56,
FAI 97.
[6,000/9,000]
