Le rouge baiser 1988

Original poster published in 1988 by Éditions du Désastre, reproducing René Gruau’s celebrated 1948 advertising design for Rouge Baiser lipstick. The date printed along the lower edge refers to the creation of Gruau’s original artwork rather than to the printing of this edition.

The composition presents a woman’s delicately outlined face partially concealed by a sweeping black blindfold. Her brilliant red lips provide the only vivid touch of colour, creating an image that is at once elegant, mysterious and immediately memorable.

Gruau reduces the design to a few confident black lines, large areas of white space and a single red accent. This sophisticated economy became central to his visual language and helped transform the Rouge Baiser campaign into an enduring icon of post-war French advertising.

René Gruau (1909–2004) was an Italian-born fashion illustrator and poster designer closely associated with the elegance of Parisian haute couture. His expressive line and dramatic use of red, black and white shaped the imagery of major fashion and beauty houses, most notably Christian Dior.

This original vintage edition was printed in offset by Union of Paris for Éditions du Désastre. It will appeal to collectors of René Gruau, fashion illustration, cosmetics advertising and twentieth-century French graphic design.

Original poster

Mode - Advertising

Editions du Désastre

Union Paris

Good condition, slight dirt