Portrait Of Mademoiselle Mars, Mounted Under Glass, 1810

Fixé under glass depicting mademoiselle Mars, actress at the Comédie Française and friend of Napoleon.
Anne-Françoise Hippolyte Boutet, known as mlle. Mars (1779-1847) was one of the glories of the Théâtre Français. She was unrivalled as a great coquette. Molière , Marivaux, Sédaine, Beaumarchais had no more accomplished interpreter. She put her fundamentally classical talent at the service of Romanticism. Mlle. Mars established her reputation in the roles of Agnès, Henriette, Victorine, Suzanne, Elmire, Célimène, Araminte and Silvia. Her naturalness, grace, wit, finesse and distinction combined with a compelling physiognomy, superb eyes, irresistible smile and enchanting voice to create an ideal of perfection that earned her the nickname "the diamond". She was Napoleon 1er's favorite actress.

Painting under glass, or "fixé sous verre", consists of executing the painting work on the reverse side of a glass plate. One of the difficulties of the process is to paint the motif inverted and, unlike the normal technique, to execute the details (nose, eyes, flowers) before the background (face, landscape). The craftsman uses oil or gouache colors mixed with a special glue. The glass protects the paint, giving it its characteristic smooth, glossy appearance. The brilliance of the paint is incomparable, it is luminous and allows transparencies of the most beautiful effect.
signed Charles Brandt,
dated 1810
France