Born in Hungary, Marcel Vertès (1896-1961) began his career as a poster designer in Vienna before settling in Paris in 1925. He established his reputation with a book of drawings, Dancings (1926), which shows him to have been a keen-eyed observer of the inter-war years, and brought him more work from the publishers of de-luxe editions. These included Chéri and La Vagabonde by Colette, Les Aventures du Roi Pausole by Pierre Louÿ’s, L’Europe Galante by Paul Morand, and Le Cirque by Ramon Gomez de la Serna.

The innocent sensuality of his work is well expressed in the shepherd and shepherdess he provided for the label of Mouton Rothschild 1951.