Paul Delaroche (paris, 1797 – 1856) - Portrait Of Marie Jauvin d'Attainville

Paul DELAROCHE (Paris, 1797 - 1856)
Portrait of Marie Jauvin d'Attainville
1852-1853.
Oil on canvas.
H : 46 ; 38 cm.

This portrait shows a woman in bust form, facing slightly to the left. Her brown hair is pulled back into a neat bun. While her face presents itself almost head-on to the viewer, her eyes are turned off-camera, as if she were observing something during the posing session, giving the impression of a snapshot. She is wearing a light-colored shirt, with a small black bow at the collar, simply sketched in with paint. The background is untreated, giving the image of a sketch at work.

At the beginning of the second half of the 19th century, Paul Delaroche was a key figure in Romanticism. Since his first successes at the Salon, prestigious commissions had accumulated, his clients were numerous and the whole of Paris knew the name of the painter of The Death of Lady Jane Grey.  
However, the end of the 1840s marked a difficult period, with the death of his wife and the political turmoil of 1848. Attached to his two children, he worried about the health of his youngest son Horace, who was suffering from a joint disease, and decided to spend winters away from Paris, first in Aachen, then in Nice, from September 1851.
When Delaroche arrived in Nice with his family, he was lodged on Carabacel hill by Countess Delfina Potocka, whom he had met a few years earlier in Versailles[1]. The Countess's estate, consisting of several villas, welcomed her artist friends, writers, musicians, intellectuals and artistocrats. It was here that the painter found the working conditions he needed to complete the last works of his career, signing several paintings at Carabacel.
In this context of encounters in the Countess's circle, it is certain that Delaroche made the acquaintance of Jules Jauvin d'Attainville, an amateur painter who also lived in the Carabacel district and assiduously frequented the salon of Delaroche's host[2]. Delaroche developed a close relationship with the Attainville couple, whom he visited several times after leaving Nice in 1853. He also invited his friend and pupil Ernest Hébert to Nice, where they shared a daily routine of work and social gatherings.
In all likelihood, our portrait was painted during this year, 1853. It is highly probable that the portrait traditionally considered a portrait of Vernet by Delaroche is in fact a portrait of Marie Jauvin d'Attainville's (1836-1913) husband, Jules Jauvin d'Attainville. Indeed, Vernet had red hair and light eyes, as evidenced by the many known portraits of the artist. On the other hand, a drawing now in the Louvre, signed by Delaroche and located at Carabacel, which depicts Jules Jauvin d'Attainville, seems to be similar to the latter portrait.

It is likely that these works were a token of friendship from Delaroche to his friends in Nice before his departure for Paris. The portrait of Madame Attainville, originally rectangular in format like its possible counterpart Portrait de Monsieur d'Attainville, was later recut to an oval format.
The choice of an intimate portrait, in the form of a sketch in which only the head is fully treated, rules out the hypothesis of a commission from the Attainville family. Indeed, similar portraits, intended for the family circle, had been executed by Delaroche and his friend Horace Vernet a few years earlier, each having chosen to represent their respective wives. In addition, Delaroche used the frontal face and off-camera gaze treatment on several occasions, notably for his sketched portraits, of which we know several examples.

The portraits of Camaldolese monks painted by Delaroche in Italy in 1834 are even earlier examples, and also relate to the context of our Nice portrait. Like our portrait, those of the monks were sketched during the artist's stay in their convent.

 However, the Attainvilles commissioned a portrait of the young Ernest Hébert during Delaroche's stay in Nice. A comparison between the portraits of the master and the pupil suggests that they were painted at the same time. The models appear to be the same age, and share the same hairstyles and expressions. It would therefore seem that the Attainville family knew both the master and the pupil well, as evidenced by the presence of works by both artists in the donation made to the French State on the death of Jules Jauvin d'Attainville.



Portrait of Jules Jauvin d'Attainville, oil on canvas, H: 47; W: 38 cm, private collection.

Portrait of Jules Jauvin d'Attainville, signed, localized, dated 1854, graphite on paper, H: 25 - W: 19 cm, Paris, Musée du Louvre (Inv. RF 366)

Portrait of Louise Delaroche, oil on canvas, H: 40 ; W: 36 cm, Musée du Louvre (RF. 1938 86)

Portrait of Louise Delaroche, oil on canvas, H: 40; W: 36 cm, Musée du Louvre (RF. 1938 86).

Portrait of a Camaldolese monk, oil on canvas, H: 23 ; W: 10 cm, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nantes.

Portrait of Marie Jauvin d'Attainville, oil on canvas, H: 97 ; W: 73 cm, Musée d'Orsay (RF. 156).


[1] Jean-Paul Portron, Les séjours du peintre Paul Delaroche au quartier Carabacel, 1848-1854, Nice historique, 1/01/2001, p.33.

[2] Mrs. Daniel Dunglas Home, D. D. Home, His Life and Mission, Arno Press, 1976, p. 387.