Fine art silkscreen printer and publisher Éric Seydoux (1946-2013) worked for forty years with several generations of artists, painters, illustra-tors, cartoonists, sculptors and graphic designers, both famous and unknown. As a young man he chose silkscreen, which in his view was the most modern and the most promising of the printmaking tech-niques, and the one with which he could best accompany the artists.

An advocate of democratizing the arts, he was determined to shake up fine art publishing in France and bring long over-due recognition to silkscreen printing. He demonstrated that the technique could be used as an artistic medium unto itself.

Éric Seydoux was always striving for innovation and improvement. He invested in and modernized his equip-ment over the years and was renowned for the great finesse of his work. Beyond the flat areas of bright colors character-istic of silkscreen printing, he was able to transcribe a wide variety of textures, such as those of charcoal or watercolor.

Artists enjoyed working with him. He had an eye for detail and a great knowledge of his craft. His peers in the trade held him in high esteem. Galleries, publishers, museums, art centers, foundations, fes-tivals, institutions, advertising agencies and artists themselves were among his many clients.

As a publisher, he invited artists to make limited editions of prints, editions with variations and even one-of-a-kind works which he exhibited at fairs and salons. The freedom of his artistic choices and orientations was coupled with a strong commitment, namely that of taking the

financial risks required for producing and exhibiting artwork.

This monograph is part of a series of events paying tribute to Éric Seydoux. The Bibliothèque nationale de France (the French National Library) held an exhibition in his honor in 2023 and is lending the works from that exhibition to be part of a larger retrospective at the Matisse Museum in Cateau-Cambrésis from June 7 until November 2, 2025. With nearly 200 works, including post-ers, prints, variations of editioned prints, one-of-a-kind works, artists’ books, bib-liophile books, illustrator’s portfolios, invitations and greeting cards, this exhi-bition will showcase the versatility of silkscreen printing which, in the hands of Éric Seydoux, highlighted many artistic movements and sensibilities.

Anne-Marie and Amélie Seydoux