LARGUIER (Léo). - Lot 182

LARGUIER (Léo). Low Rents and Ivory Towers. Photographs by Jean Roubier. Paris, Éditions du Bateau Ivre, [circa 1946–1948]. Large quarto, publisher’s binding with illustrated dust jacket. First edition of this elegant album dedicated to old Paris, in which Léo Larguier (1878–1958), a member of the Académie Goncourt, nostalgically evokes the working-class neighborhoods, writers’ homes, artists’ studios, and the capital’s iconic landmarks. The illustrations, consisting of numerous black heliogravures, are by photographer Jean Roubier (1896–1986), whose images combine documentary precision with a poetic sensibility for Parisian architecture. The book offers a remarkable portrait of a Paris that has largely disappeared today. A beautiful edition printed on high-quality paper. Condition: a fine copy. The illustrated dust jacket has tears, small losses, and marginal wear; the spine of the dust jacket was restored some time ago. The binding is in good condition; the interior is in very fresh condition.