Sempé's "Suited Gentleman Cycling by Night"

Jean-Jacques Sempé's art is brilliantly conceived and deeply atmospheric. His cartoons frequently feature bicyclists, as in the example here of "Suited Gentleman Cycling by Night." His work can appear deceptively simple while being quite moving and profound. 

Here's the auction listing from Whyte's in Ireland:

SUITED GENTLEMAN CYCLING BY NIGHT

Jean-Jacques Sempé
 (French, b.1932) 

Signature: signed lower right

Medium: ink on paper 

Dimensions:51 by 30cm., 20 by 11.7 5in. 

Auction Date/Lot No.:
14 March 2011/ 135
Estimate : 800 EUR - 1 200 EUR 

Sold :	2 600 EUR
	2 600  EUR	3 625 USD	2 229 GPB

Lot Description:

French cartoonist Jean-Jacques Sempé, known simply as Sempé, was born in Bordeaux and began his artistic career working in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés, district in Paris with René Goscinny creator of the comic book Asterix. Sempé received accolades for his work from as early as 1952 and became renowned at this juncture in his career for his creation of a character named Nicolas in his cartoons for the comic book Le Moustique. In 1960, Nicolas became a central figure in Sempé's oeuvre and the comic Le Petit Nicolas was published. Full page cartoons by the artist have appeared in Paris Match for many years as well as on the cover of The New Yorker magazine.

WHYTE'S -Mar 14, 2011

Dublin

Lot number: 135 

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