The French artist George Barbier (1882-1932) designed costumes for the Folies Bergeres, for the Ballets Russes, and for Rodolfo Valentino in the film Monsieur Beaucaire (1924). He also designed textiles, wallpaper, and jewelry, illustrated books and fashion periodicals, and is responsible for Cartier’s black panther logo. Albert Flament referred to him as “one of the most precious and significant artists of our era.”
Barbier designed plates for various fashion albums and almanacs, including Modes et manières d’aujourd’hui (1912-1923), La Guirlande des mois (1917-1920), Le Bonheur du jour (1920-1924), and finally, his own publication Falbalas et fanfreluches (1922-1926). The final title was published in a limited edition of 600 copies with twelve plates in each annual hand-colored by pochoir, using up to thirty stencils per images. The text of 1922 is by comtesse Mathieu de Noailles; 1923 by Colette; 1924 by Cécil Soral; 1925 by Gérard d’Houville; and 1926 by the baronne de Brimont.
Interestingly, Barbier first exhibited at the Salon des Humoristes in 1910 under the name Edward William Larry and often published articles under other pen names.
