Sarah Bernhardt By Louise Abbema

Ten drawings in a single frame, depicting two portraits of men in profile and women, some in Louis XVI period costume. These drawings were probably made during the performance of a play, and it's easy to recognize the silhouette of Sarah Bernhardt, Louise Abbéma's companion. One of the male portraits is annotated "d'après Dormeuil (c't' imbécile) "and signed below another annotated "Sarah".
Louise Abbéma (1853-1927) was one of the most renowned painters of the Third Republic. A pupil of Charles Chaplin, Jean Jacques Henner and Carolus Duran, she was quickly noticed at the Salons Officiels and took part in decorating numerous Paris town halls. She was also a renowned portraitist, her portraits of Sarah Bernhardt, Charles Garnier and Ferdinand de Lesseps being virtually the official images.
The drawings, of varying sizes, are all assembled and grouped in a single frame as a snapshot souvenir of the same theatrical evening, with sketches during the performance, the intermission and the aftermath.