Bonjour Tristesse

Silkscreen poster for Otto Preminger's 1958 drama. Second printing circa 1985. For more information about Silkscreens click here

Directed by Otto Preminger, Bonjour Tristesse, which translates as 'Hello Sadness' is a film adapted from Francoise Sagan's popular novel of the same name. The story centers around a pampered, motherless, young woman vacationing with her father on the French Riviera. The film traces the girl's raw emotions of love, jealousy, and loss, as she leaves childhood for adolescence, falling in love at the same time as her father also embarks on a new romance.

Bass' reductive but highly evocative symbol, a haiku-like eye, and a tear is created from a few simple brush strokes. The two large eyes (each containing or reflecting a heart), tiny mouth, and huge tear, together with paint that fails to fully adhere, hint a the poignancy and delicacy of the emotions. Above all, the silkscreen poster signals that the film is about a woman, love, and sadness.