A quintessentially typical Székely portfolio from the mid-fifties, Poème d’automne (Autumn Poem) tells of an afternoon encounter which moves inexorably from dance floor to park to bedroom. Pastels are an uncommon Székely medium, here shown to arresting colourful effect. The alteration of ‘10’ to ‘12’ illustrations on the back cover suggests that on reflection Székely felt that the transition from the third to fourth (now fifth) drawing, from fondling to penetration, proceeded rather too rapidly.

Poème d’automne was part of the collector Tony Fekete’s collection, which was sold at auction in May 2021.