Maurice Denis

She was More Beautiful Than Dreams, plate seven from Love

1898, published 1899
Lithograph in pale pink, slate blue, yellow-green, and pale olive on light ivory wove paper
40.5 × 29.3 cm (15.9 × 11.5 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

These 12 prints come from Love , a series of color lithographs that form a disjointed narrative about a woman who experiences love, although it is unclear if she is falling in love with a man, nature, or her faith. Each soft and dreamlike image is paired with a caption of fragmented poetry that serves as its title, but these phrases do not directly describe their corresponding images. Maurice Denis, who was also a writer, crafted these puzzling yet evocative captions to add layers of meaning through the interplay of text and image.

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More by Maurice Denis

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