"L'Envol", 1960

Besides paintings, Braque had created prints early on, but with interruptions of several years. It was only after World War II that he rediscovered printing techniques and, until his death in 1963, created a comprehensive oeuvre, limiting himself to very few motifs. Repeatedly asked about the motif of the bird in his late works, Braque said: "It goes beyond what you can say with words. It is the representation of an indefinable feeling"; and: "The bird is the summation of my art. It is more than just painting." Actually, to Braque the bird did not have a deeper symbolic meaning, but in its extremely reduced form, in varying colours and with changing backgrounds, it was the ideal motif for his graphic works.