Equestrienne (At the Cirque Fernando) – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Equestrienne (At the Cirque Fernando) (1888)

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec | Post-Impressionism | Oil on canvas

A trick rider prepares to leap through a paper hoop atop a galloping horse while ringmaster Monsieur Loyal cracks his whip across the circus ring. Toulouse-Lautrec was just 23 when he painted this — his first monumental work — using radical cropping, flattened perspective, and the bold outlines of cloisonnism to turn a Montmartre circus act into a declaration of artistic independence from Impressionism.

Did you know? This painting hung in the foyer of the Moulin Rouge from the day it opened in October 1889 — bought by the nightclub's co-owner Joseph Oller. So when Toulouse-Lautrec later painted 'At the Moulin Rouge,' his own Equestrienne was literally on the wall behind him. The rider may be Suzanne Valadon, who was a circus acrobat before becoming an important Post-Impressionist painter herself.

Original held at Art Institute of Chicago

Museum-quality giclée print on archival Enhanced Matte Art paper (200gsm) with fade-resistant pigment inks rated for 100+ years. Also available as gallery-wrapped canvas and custom framed.

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