élégante à l'Ombrelle - Watercolor - About 1880 - Signed

Baron de Fauconnet (19th century)
Élégante à l'ombrelle
Watercolor on paper
Signed lower right: B(on) de Fauconnet
Circa 1880-1890
28.5 × 15 cm (view) - 41.5 × 27.5 cm (with frame)

Standing slightly toward the viewer, this young woman vivaciously embodies the worldly elegance of Belle Époque Paris. She is dressed in a long ochre jacket with gold highlights, belted with a navy blue ribbon, and a skirt cascading with pink ruffles - a silhouette characteristic of 1880s fashion, with its discreet turn and matching gloves. A dark cap with white lace caps her slightly tilted head; with a gloved hand, she casually holds a closed parasol.

The watercolor is executed with ease, in a delicate palette of warm browns, powdery pinks and Prussian blue. The brushstroke is free, almost impressionistic on the ruffles of the skirt, more precise on the face and accessories. The background is left bare, giving the figure an airy presence reminiscent of the fashion studies or genre sketches practiced with talent by high-society amateur artists.

The signature B(on) de Fauconnet - i.e. Baron de Fauconnet - designates a practitioner not listed in specialized dictionaries, most likely an amateur watercolorist from the nobility, whose level of execution testifies to careful training. This type of aristocratic production, both decorative and anecdotal, is finding increasing interest today as a testimony to the visual and dress culture of the late 19th century.

Condition: very good. The paper is sound, not yellowed, with virtually no foxing. The colors retain their original freshness.

Frame: dark-stained oak rod with gilded fillet and gilded passe-partout, period, slightly altered, but contributing to the charm of the whole.

Work on view at the gallery (07240)
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