ALBERT-ERNEST CARRIER-BELLEUSE (FRENCH, 1824-1887)

The present lot is an exquisite example of Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse’s ability create highly textured and often sinuous fabrics out of firm materials. The intricate and delicate tracery of her crown is reminiscent of an example depicting the Comtesse de Castiglione, in the collection of Lucile Audouy, Paris, dated to 1864 (illustrated, Carrier-Belleuse Le Maître de Rodin, exhibition catalogue, 22 May – 27 October 2014, Compiègne, 2014, p.57, cat. 39). The Comtesse famously posed for a photograph taken by Pierre-Louis Pierson after a ball at the Tuileries on February 9, 1863, dressed in what was considered a scandalous costume as the Queen of Etruria. This served as inspiration for various works by Carrier-Belleuse, the cited example executed in terracotta mounted with bronze colored accents. Another example with beautifully drawn lace is in the collection of the Château de Compiègne (illustrated op cit. p. 53).