Presumed Portrait Of Queen Victoria Circa 1849 By Henri-guillaume Schlesinger (1814-1893)

Presumed Portrait of Queen Victoria oil on panel circa 1849 by Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger (1814-1893)

Unquestionable quality and beauty emanate from this fine romantic portrait of Queen Victoria, wearing a splendid gown embellished with a blue jacket, a red shawl carelessly laid at her side. The details of the hands, jewelry and clothing are magnificent. Grace and romance.
The painting is beautifully framed in carved and gilded wood and stucco.

Fine mid-19th-century oil on panel, signed lower left by Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger and dated 1849.

Measurements unframed:   H 14.56 In. - W 11.61 In.
Measurements with frame:  H 21.65 In. - W 20.07 In.

On its original panel and in its original frame, in very fine condition.

Provenance:

Our painting comes from the dispersion of the Hélène Bokanowski-Khann collection, during the Arcurial sale of February 22, 2017 from Alphonse Kann to his niece Hélène, a century of collection from 1900-2000 and ADER sale of November 3, 2022.

On October 18, 1940 the Germans emptied Alphonse Kann's property, taking 1400 paintings. In July 1947, the CRA (Commission de Récupération Artistique set up at the Liberation) returned 725 paintings to Alphonse Kann.
His niece Hélène Bokanoswski has kept part of this collection, while enriching it with modern and contemporary works by artists she often knew, until the 1990s.
We can deduce that this painting by Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger was one of the 725 paintings returned in 1947.

Biography:

Henri Guillaume Schlesinger (1814-1893) - (Heinrich Wilhelm Schlesinger in German), born August 6, 1814 in Frankfurt am Main, Prussia, and died February 21, 1893 in Neuilly sur Seine, German portrait and genre painter. In addition to oil painting, he used watercolor and miniature painting on ivory.

Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger first studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, then moved to France and continued his artistic education in Paris.
Dividing his life between Austria and France. Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger finally adopted French nationality in 1870.
Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger exhibited almost every year between 1840 and 1890 at the Salon des artistes français, genre scenes, some of which were lithographed, which allowed him to acquire strong popularity.
Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger obtained a third-class medal in 1840, a second-class medal in 1847, and was awarded the Legion of Honor in 1866.
His suite of paintings entitled "The Five Senses" was purchased by Empress Eugenie after the 1865 Salon.
Present in Istanbul during the reign of Mahmud II (1808 - 1839), Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger painted several official portraits of the sultan, including a large equestrian portrait in 1837, depicting him in Western costume, wearing a black frock coat and fez. This painting is now kept in the Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul. Two years later, Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger made another portrait of Mahmud II, offered by Rachid Pacha to Louis-Philippe and which is in the Museum of Versailles.
During his stays in the East, Henri-Guillaume Schlesinger made numerous visits to the court, which allowed him, on his return to Paris, to paint Orientalist pictures in his studio, notably harem scenes of great elegance, whose delicacy reminds us of the Ingresque style.

Museums:

Museum of Versailles.
Museum of Vienna. Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul.

Bibliography:

Bénézit, Dictionnaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs, Gründ 1999 Schurr.
Dictionnaire des petits maîtres du 19ème Bellier de la Chavignerie et Auvray.
Dictionnaire des Artistes de l'École Française Frédéric Hitzel, Couleurs de la Corne d'Or.