Soleils Bas

Soleils Bas is an illustrated book featuring prints designed by André Masson that accompany a poem by Georges Limbour. An early follower of Surrealism in Paris, Masson is known for creating spontaneous images derived from his subconscious. The illustrations for Soleils Bas were made using drypoint technique, a process in which the design is delicately engraved into a metal plate, leaving raised edges along the incision that print as fine, fuzzy lines. The choice of drypoint may help explain the book’s small edition size (only 100 copies), as repeated printing using this technique causes the fuzzy edges—called the “burr” —to become compressed and leave fainter marks. Before Soleils Bas was published in 1924, neither Masson or Limbour had produced a book; this work marked each artist’s first such publication in the Surrealist movement.