Gustave Le Gray (French, 1820-1884) Portrait... Lot 297

Gustave Le Gray (French, 1820-1884) Portrait of Marguerite Lacressonière, c.1855 Vintage print on albumen paper, from a collodion glass negative. Portrait of the great actress, with a serene, smiling face, taken at the Le Gray studio, 35 Boulevard des Capucines, Paris. This print, with its deliberately light tones, was intended to be enhanced with watercolor or oil colors. The print is signed GUSTAVE LE GRAY on the right, with a stamp inked in red. Moving autograph letter from her husband, dated the day of the actress's death, to her last author, who wrote the successful play Les Fugitifs for her: "Offered to Mr. Ferdinand Dugué / for her! / January 26, 1859 / Lacressonnière". Height 27.7 Width 21.1 cm. (deliberate light tints for the coloring, ovalized halo at the portrait's outlines, characteristic of Le Gray's portraits. The few period retouches in ink have darkened with age. A few old traces on the back of the mount, but no damage to the print). Mounted on period bristol board, recut to 29.4 x 23 cm. Provenance: former Fildier collection. Gustave Le Gray, ca. 1855. A rare portrait picture of French actress Marguerite Lacressonière. Signed. With a handwritten note from her husband dated to the day of her death. This print, with deliberately light tones, was intended to be enhanced with watercolor or oil colors. A very rare portrait of Madame Lacressonnière (Lyon, 1815 - Paris, 1859), of which only two different proofs from the same sitting are known: the one presented in this sale and its variant, unsigned by Le Gray, which can be found in the album of portraits of personalities composed by Léon Maufras, preserved at the BnF (folio 88, view 179). Marguerite Gérinière, wife of Lacressonière, was born in Lyon in 1815 and died on January 26, 1859. She made her stage debut in Lyon at the age of 14. She continued to perform in the provinces, and then spent a season at La Gaîté in Paris. From 1843 to 1846, she was engaged in Marseille. In 1846, Alexandre Dumas created the Théâtre Historique (later the Théâtre Sarah Bernhardt and today the Théâtre de la Ville), and in 1847 she became its favorite actress. Until 1850, she played the title role in Reine Margot, as well as Monte Cristo, Catilina, Angèle and Henri III et sa cour. That same year, she married Louis Charles Adrien Le Sot de la Panneterie (1819-1893), known as Lacressonière, from whom she separated in 1856. She played successively at the Gaîté in 1851, the Cirque de l'impératrice in 1856, the Odéon in 1858 and the Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique, where she ended her career, exhausted. The letter from Monsieur Lacressonnière to Monsieur Dugué dates from the day of Marguerite's death, "pour elle!" (for her!), a last-minute tribute from the great actress to her last author. Ferdinand Dugué (1816 -1913), playwright, created with Auguste Anicet-Bourgeois the large-scale drama Les Fugitifs, premiered on June 21, 1858 at the Ambigu-Comique. Madame Lacressonnière of the Théâtre Imperial was specially hired to play the female title role of Suzanne, wife of David, played by Omer. In another cast for this show (alternating or following the death of Marguerite Lacressonnière), Monsieur Lacressonnière played David, with Madame Marie Laurent as Suzanne. Following a hundred performances of Les Fugitifs at the Ambigu-Comique, Madame Lacressonnière fell ill from exhaustion. Separated from his wife for several years, Monsieur Lacressonnière behaved gallantly, as a gentleman, on hearing of her illness. He came to sit by her bedside, and she breathed her last in his arms. The press bears emotional witness to her passing: Le Figaro - Programme - Quotidien du lundi 31 janvier 1859. 1re année - N° 24. "Madame Lacressonnière, who had been ill for some time, died last Wednesday. Her loss will be keenly felt. She was one of the most distinguished artists in Paris, and modern drama loses in her a precious interpreter". Le Monde Dramatique, February 3, 1859. "Marguerite Lacressonnière is buried at Père-Lachaise. The bust adorning her tomb, which depicts her holding a mask, was produced thanks to a major period subscription, confirming her very high profile." Sites consulted: Gustave Le Gray portraits, Sylvie Aubenas BnF. Gallica.bnf.fr / Les archivesduspectacle.net