Jacob, Max, French poet, painter, writer, and critic (1876-1944). Autograph letter signed.

59 rue Nollet [Paris], 7. XI. 1931.

4to. 1 p.

 1,500.00

Apologizing to his friend and protégé Maurice Morel, known as l'Abbé Morel, for having forgotten an appointment. In a desperate and almost certainly exaggerated apology, Jacob laments his "appalling and tormented existence", his poor health and his "inescapable financial embarrassments" that "absorb" him: "Je ne sais comment m'excuser de n'avoir pas songé à notre rendez-vous. Je vis une existence atroce et tourmenté non seulement par mes malades [!] mais parl'inéluctables embarras financiers qui m'absorbent et nécessitent des courses fatals; il ne s'agit de rien moins que de la rupture de mon contrat et qui est mon unique moyen de vivre".

The "breach of his contract" and only means of livelihood that Jacob mentions in the end of the letter probably refers to his long litigation with an insurance company following a car accident in 1929. In 1932, Jacob finally was adjudged a small life annuity.

The devout catholic Jacob met the future priest Maurice Morel (1908-91) when he was taken in by father Albert Fleureau in Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire for detoxification in 1921. Jacob dedicated is 1921 poem "Le Laboratoire central" to Morel and encouraged him to follow his second calling as a painter. In his art, Morel was decidedly modern and abstract. He opened the catholic church of France to non-figurative art, even facilitating the introduction of modern art to the Vatican Museums.

Traces of folds.

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