PLESSIX - Lot 45

PLESSIX MICHEL PLESSIX THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS L'Échappée belle (T.3), Delcourt 1999 Original plate no. 2 accompanied by its color setting. Graphite and India ink on paper 32 × 48 cm (12.6 × 18.9 in.) Watercolor on paper 21.5 × 26 cm (8.46 × 10.23 in.) Michel Plessix's adaptation of Le Vent dans les Saules feels like a family, almost like home. In this opening sequence of L'Échappée belle, the author offers us a masterful, perfectly paced narrative lesson. First, a close-up of Taupe, then a zoom-out. In the foreground, a butterfly and a few flowers; in the background, we see Mole and Rat. The next large central panel, a marvel in itself, depicts the rural setting of the thatched cottage by the river, facing unspoiled, barely domesticated nature. The last strip, at the bottom, focuses on the "news of the day", a conversation between two friends, over a drink sipped gently under the arbour, in a simple, welcoming setting.