Charles-édouard Boutibonne (1816–1897) - Portrait Of Mary De La Barre De Nanteuil - Oil

Charles-Édouard Boutibonne
(Pest, 1816 – Wilderswil, 1897)

Portrait of Mary Augusta de La Barre de Nanteuil
(New York, 1836 – Saint-Brieuc, 1862)

Oil on oval canvas
Signed and dated on the right
56 x 46 cm
1860

Born on July 8, 1816 in Pest, Hungary, to French parents, Charles-Édouard Boutibonne received early artistic training in Vienna, in the studio of the court painter Friedrich von Amerling (1803–1887). He completed his apprenticeship in Paris, where he successively attended the studios of Achille Devéria (1800–1857), his brother Eugène Devéria (1805–1865), and then, above all, Franz Xaver Winterhalter (1805–1873), of whom he became one of the closest collaborators.

Boutibonne quickly established himself as one of the most prominent portrait painters of the Second Empire. His growing reputation led to important official commissions, including two portraits of Napoleon III painted in collaboration with Winterhalter. He regularly participated in the Paris Salon between 1837 and 1883, where he received a 3rd class medal in 1847 for a portrait, while also sending his works to various provincial salons, notably in Mulhouse. In 1854, he stayed in England, where he was invited to Windsor to paint portraits of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He exhibited at the Royal Academy in London in 1856 and 1857. His career then took a more discreet dimension: in 1867, he became a member of the Artistic Association of the Canton of Bern, and finally settled permanently in Wilderswil, near Interlaken, around 1885. He led a peaceful life there until his death in 1897.

A painter with an elegant touch and a polished style, Boutibonne excelled in the art of society portraiture, following in the direct line of Winterhalter, but with a more intimate personal touch, often marked by a sensitivity to the psychology of the sitter.

Museums: Mulhouse, Toulouse, Compiègne…

This delicate portrait of Mary de La Barre de Nanteuil, from a family of the French nobility, embodies both the worldly elegance of the Second Empire and the refined style of Charles Édouard Boutibonne, in which one perceives the influence of his teacher Franz Xaver Winterhalter. The artist, renowned for his highly distinguished female portraits, displays all his virtuosity here: the softness of the facial modeling, the satiny rendering of the blue dress and the effects of light on the fabrics reflect an undeniable technical mastery.

The serene, slightly averted gaze and the three-quarter pose give the model a restrained dignity, underlined by the vermillion red background which enhances the pearly complexion of the face. The richness of the costume, the fine details and the neck jewel testify to a high social rank and a careful staging, typical of commissioned portraits of the period.

Having died prematurely at the age of 26, Mary de La Barre de Nanteuil finds in this portrait a form of memorial permanence, inscribed in the tradition of the intimate and high-society portrait of the 19th century.