Paris in the 1890s was awash in color. Painters painted with unprecedented vividness, the streets were enlivened with color posters and publishers recognized the demand for original color prints. Vallotton, on the other hand, worked exclusively in black and white throughout the decade.

With customary wit and deftness, Vallotton uses the simplest means to convey the rush of "amateurs d'estampes" (print fanciers) to discuss a newly displayed print on this address card commissioned by the print and poster dealer, Edmund Sagot.