DESNOS Robert. ÉTAT DE VEILLE. - Lot 47

DESNOS Robert. ÉTAT DE VEILLE. Paris, Robert J. Godet, 1943: in-4 (320 x 205 mm) of 34-[6] pp. in sheets, cover with flaps, uncut. Original edition illustrated with 10 burin engravings by Gaston-Louis Roux. ONE OF 20 HEADWRITING COPIES reprinted on watermarked Arches (this one no. V, printed for Monsieur Blaizot, who had subscribed to part of the deluxe edition), containing a suite on chine, 5 rejected plates and an original drawing by Gaston-Louis Roux. OUR COPY INCLUDES ON A WOVE PAPER SHEET (275 X 160 MM) TWO RECTO-VERSO STATES OF THE ANNOUNCED DRAWING, THE FIRST IN PENCIL, THE SECOND IN INDIA INK. The last work Desnos saw published before his arrest, État de veille is a collection whose quatrains are written in alexandrines, like his first book, Le Fard des Argonautes. Some of the pieces, such as Demain, are famous for their spirit of revolt and the tragic breath that runs through them. "If we don't sleep, it's to watch for the dawn".