Erté: the wondrous, over-the-top art of Romain de Tirtoff

  Erté (pronounced as his initials would be pronounced in French) ("air-tay"...) was born Roman Tetrovich Tirtov in Saint Petersburg, Russia on 11/23/1892 to a distinguished family with traceable history going to 16th century Tartars. It is no wonder then, that we see his acuity as regards colour, movement, finish, lines, drama & animals...his serpentine, women & their equally sinuous dogs were the roaring 20s. His extraordinary talent & prolific scope are revealed in his ceaseless creation of excellence: costumes, jewelry, graphic art, clothing, sculpture, set design...you name it, he created it. Beautifully.

Moving to Paris in 1910-ish (much to the dismay of his family, who purportedly wished that he remain in Russia & follow family tradition, becoming a naval officer) he instead created a pseudonym "Erté" (so as not to bring shame to his family) and ensconced himself with Prince Nicolas Ouroussoff (12/17/1879-04/08/1933) with whom he lived until the Prince's passing in 1933. During this time, Erté landed a contract with Harpers Bazaar magazine, creating more than 200 covers. Undoubtedly, you've seen them...reed-like women & their extraordinary dogs!

Erté embodied the Art Deco movement. In fact, he was born for it. He journeyed to the USA & worked for Louis B. Mayer designing sets & costumes. Earning worldwide acclaim for his ballet & opera sets; his costumerie for ballet, opera, film, revues & cabarets; his graphic art; and his exquisite sculpture...he rightfully enjoyed a 1960s renaissance...in which he was still prolifically designing!
 
Naturally, his work is in every major museum on planet earth...it may even be in the recesses of your liquor cabinet, as some of his last work involved designing limited edition bottles for Courvoisier. (if so, please don't hesitate to invite me for a nightcap)...passing into the great mystery on 04/21/1990 in Paris he was 97!!!! I hope you enjoy the images...