Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901) -- biography here -- did not quite make it to his 37th birthday, joining a surprisingly long list of artists who died before reaching 40. Had he lived a normal life-span, most of his existing paintings, posters, and other works might have been classed as "early."

Even so, it might interest readers to feature some of his really early paintings, works completed by the time he was about 25.

As can be seen, he was a proficient artist even as a teenager and capable of competently painting in traditional style. Yet even then, he was experimenting with a more thinly-painted, sketchier manner as can be seen in the first image below done when he was about 18.

Gallery

[Image]Young Routy in Céleyan - 1882

[Image]Seated Nude - 1882

[Image]Academic study - 1883

[Image]Gustave-Lucien Dennery - 1883

[Image]Portrait of a Young Woman - 1884

[Image]Carmen Gaudin - 1885

[Image]Suzanne Valadon - ca. 1886

[Image]The Laundress - Carmen Gaudin - 1886

[Image]Mme. Lili Grenier - 1888

[Image]Hélène Vary - 1888

[Image]Poudre Riz (Suzanne Valadon) - 1888-89