Ballets russes | PY Rare Books

Image for ANTHONY & HASKELL. Ballet. Camera Studies. First edition, inscribed; limited to 100 copies. London, 1937 #3

One of only 100 copies - not only signed by Anthony, but inscribed by Haskell too

ANTHONY, Gordon and Arnold HASKELL

Ballet. Camera Studies

Bles, London, 1937. £1,250

Fine example of this classic record of the Ballets Russes, with the signatures of both authors, which is unusual.

Image for S. SORINE. Portraits. First edition, full morocco binding. Berlin, 1929. #2

Famous portraits luxuriously bound and with provenance

SORINE, Savely [Savelii Abramovich SORIN] (artist) and André SALMON

Portraits

Edition Ganymed, Berlin, 1929. £5,950

A large, famous publication showing the rich and famous of the roaring twenties: an attractive example of this uncommon publication, coming from a descendant of some of the people portrayed. With the maximum number of plates.

Image for BARBIER & VAUDOYER. Album dédié à Tamar Karsavina. First edition. Paris, 1914. #2

With the plates in beautiful, fresh condition

BARBIER, George (artist) and Jean-Louis VAUDOYER

Album dédié à Tamar Karsavina

Collections Pierre Corrard, Paris, 1914. £3,950

Fine example of the first edition. Barbier, a great art-deco artist and illustrator, celebrates here one of the star dancers of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes - a beautiful production in appealing condition.

Image for COCTEAU & IRIBE. Vaslav Nijinsky. First edition, Paris, 1910. #2

Art-deco elegance at its best

IRIBE, Paul (artist) and Jean COCTEAU

Vaslav Nijinsky

Société Générale d'Impression, Paris, [1910]. £1,500

Excellent example of this classic celebration of the star of Diaghilev's Ballets russes. First edition.

Image for BALLETS RUSSES: BARBIER and YORKE, Three works, First editions, 1913-20. #2

Dancing stars in more than 30 pochoir plates and attractively bound

BARBIER, George, and Arabella YORKE (artists), Jean-Louis VAUDOYER, Francis de MIOMANDRE and Cyril BEAUMONT

Album dédié à Tamar Karsavina [BOUND WITH] The Art of Lydia Lopokova [BOUND WITH] Designs on the Dances of Vaslav Nijinsky

I. Paris, Collections Pierre Corrard; II & III. London, C. W. Beaumont, 1914, 1920 and 1913. £12,500

Scarce gathering of Yorke's beautiful and rare publication and both Barbier's 'albums', all bound at the time in a fine blue calf signed binding - a fine volume indeed.

Image for L. BAKST. Feia kukol. First edition of the postcards, 1904. #2

Charming ballet costumes in postcards

BAKST, Leon

Feia kukol [La Fée des poupées]

Ilin, Skt. Peterburg, 1904. £2,750

A complete set of these lovely postcards showing ballet costumes by the master of the genre, who would later be central to Diaghilev's 'Ballets Russes'.

Image for BAKST, LEVINSON, A. Sleeping Princess, first edition, 1923. #1

Very clean, in the publisher's slipcase

[BAKST] – LEVINSON, André

The Designs of Léon Bakst for the Sleeping Princess

London, Benn Brothers, 1923. £1,950

One of the great books on Bakst's talent - the only one devoted to a specific ballet. A copy remarkable for its cleanliness, especially of the fragile original binding.

Image for Diaghilev, Autograph Letter Signed, to Hebertot, 1924. #1

Diaghilev collecting debts

DIAGHILEV, Serge

Autograph letter, signed, to "cher Directeur" [Jacques Hébertot]

Paris, 24 June 1924. £3,950

Very good autograph letter by Diaghilev, the celebrated founder of the Ballets Russes. With his bold signature, which is rarely found.

Image for GONCHAROVA & LARIONOV. L'Art décoratif théâtral moderne. First edition, Paris, 1919. #2

Out of stock

Ballets Russes innovations in large pochoirs

GONTCHAROVA [Natalia GONCHAROVA] and LARIONOW [Mikhail LARIONOV] (artists), and Valentin PARNAKH

L'Art décoratif théâtral moderne

Paris, Crété for 'La Cible', 1919.

Fine complete copy of the first, limited edition. With beautiful plates by the two Russian avant-garde artists working for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in Paris, some of these illustrations large and strikingly colourful.

Image for [BAKST]. L'Art décoratif de Léon Bakst. First edition, Paris, 1913. In excellent condition #2

Out of stock

Exceptionally clean copy in its striking binding

[BAKST] – ALEXANDRE, Arsène and Jean COCTEAU

L'Art décoratif de Léon Bakst

De la More Press, Londres, for Maurice de Brunoff, Paris, 1913.

The most impressive of the "Bakst books", published at an early date and here in a beauticul copy.

Image for BAKST, L. Inedited works. First edition, New York, 1927 #2

Out of stock

In luminous pochoir with silver highlights

[BAKST] – REAU, Louis, Denis ROCHE, Valerian SVETLOV and A. TESSIER

Inedited Works of Bakst

Jacomet and Lang, Paris, for Brentano's, New York, 1927.

Among the best representations of Bakst's costumes for the Ballets Russes, especially remarkable for its pochoir technique. A lovely copy of the first edition.

Out of stock

Inscribed to Proust's Russian-born friend

BARBIER, George (artist) and Jean-Louis VAUDOYER

Album dédié à Tamar Karsavina

Collections Pierre Corrard, Paris, 1914.

A classic Ballets-Russes work inscribed to a Russian-born Parisian lady, while she was helping Proust publishing the beginning of his 'Recherche': a fine example of the first edition of this famous work.

Image for LIFAR, S. Diagilev i s Diagilevym. First edition, large-paper copy, Paris, 1939. #1

Out of stock

Exceptionally large paper - inscribed

LIFAR, Serge

Diagilev i s Diagilevym [Diaghilev, and with Diaghilev]

Berezniak for Dom knigi, Paris, 1939.

A bibliophile's pleasure (and definitely Lifar was one!): an extra-large paper copy of his standard work on Diaghilev, one of 15 ad nominem copies, warmly inscribed to the wife of a leading Russian publisher and bookdealer in Paris. An exceptional example.

Image for GLADKY, S. & A. SALMON. Synthese du costume theatral. First edition, Paris, 1927. #2

Out of stock

Cubist theatrical impressions

GLADKY, Serge (artist, also Serhii HLADKY) and André SALMON

Synthèse du costume théâtral

Ducros et Colas for Le Théâtre Mondial, Paris, 1927.

One of only 170 copies of this beautiful album of fresh and striking plates. In a fine modern binding.

Image for LEVINSON, A. Bakst: The Story of the Artist's Life. First edition, copy num. 1; Berlin, 1923. #1

Out of stock

Copy Number 1

[BAKST] – LEVINSON, André

Bakst: the Story of the Artist's Life

Selle, Berlin for Brentano's, New York and A. Kogan, Berlin, 1923.

The most celebrated artist of the Ballets Russes, celebrated here in this beautiful production - of which it is the copy num. 1 out of only 315 printed for the UK.

Image for BAKST, L. Inedited works. First edition with dust jacket. 1927 #2

Out of stock

In luminous pochoir with silver highlights

[BAKST] – REAU, Louis, Denis ROCHE, Valerian SVETLOV and A. TESSIER

Inedited Works of Bakst

Brentano's, New York, 1927.

Among the best representations of Bakst's costumes for the Ballets Russes, here with the rare dust-jacket in very good condition.

Image for Barbier, Danses de Nijinsky, 1913 #1

Out of stock

A lovely, fresh example

BARBIER, George and Francis de MIOMANDRE

Dessins sur les Danses de Vaslav Nijinsky

La Belle Edition, Paris, 1913.

Beautiful art-deco interpretations of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, seen here through the combined geniuses of Barbier and Nijinsky, in the early and most successful years of Diaghilev's entreprise. A rare book in such a lovely condition.

Image for [BAKST] - ALEXANDRE, A. and J. COCTEAU. L'Art décoratif de Léon Bakst. First edition, 1913. #2

Out of stock

Beautiful copy in its striking binding

[BAKST] – ALEXANDRE, Arsène and Jean COCTEAU

L'Art décoratif de Léon Bakst

De la More Press, Londres, for Maurice de Brunoff, Paris, 1913.

The earliest, largest and most impressive work on Bakst's striking art. A fine, fresh example, in its great art-déco binding.

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