GENERAL DESCRIPTION
In this portrait, Eugène Delacroix uses the familiar conventions of Renaissance portraiture to lend a solemn dignity to the model. The solid pyramid formed by her body, set at a slight angle to the viewer, and the low horizon of the landscape behind her remind us of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa (1517, Musée du Louvre, Paris) . Although the sitter's blue turban and paisley shawl seem to allude to her status as an exotic foreigner, these accessories were probably studio props, much like the elaborate jeweled brooch, which appears in another portrait Delacroix painted at around the same time.
Although we do not know the name of the sitter for this portrait, she was certainly one of the non-European models that Delacroix employed during the 1820s while working on his monumental paintings of subjects drawn from Near Eastern history and Orientalist literature. The portrait could be the same one Delacroix exhibited at the 1827 Paris Salon under the title “Study of an Indian Woman’s Head.” The same model appears in Delacroix’s famous Death of Sardanapalus (1827, Musée du Louvre, Paris). Delacroix’s repeated representations of exotic women are a sign of the romantic appeal of foreign lands and peoples in his day, particularly the Middle East and North Africa. Although non-European women appear in many of his compositions, Delacroix did very few proper portraits, free of historical or foreign contexts.
Adapted from
- Heather MacDonald, DMA Label copy (2005.34.McD), August 2009.
- Bonnie Pitman, ed., Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2012), 182.
NOTES
Add information to bibliographic sources, published references.
Text entries added to TMS record (Guide 2012 entry, Smartphone video script, and smartphone audio script)
Reformatted and revised provenance and exhibition history.
Entered three former titles according to the exhibition history records.
EXHIBITION HISTORY KNOWN? Y
1827: Salon, Paris, France, 1827-1828 (exhibited as Tête d'étude d'une Indienne, Head of an Indian Woman) [1]
1864: "Oeuvres d'Eugène Delacroix," Société Nationale des Beaux Arts, Paris, France [2]
1885: "Exposition Eugène Delacroix au profit de la souscription destinée á éléver á Paris un momument á sa mémoire," Société Nationale des Beaux Arts, Paris, France, March-April 1885, no. 86 (as "Aline la mulâtresse")
1910: "Vingt Peintres du XIXe Siècle, Chefs-d'oeuvre de l'école française," Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, France, no. 72 [3]
1930: "Eugène Delacroix: Centenaire du Romantisme," Musée du Louvre, Paris, France, no. 19
1937-1968: Philadelphia Museum of Art [long-term loan]
2012: "Face to Face: International Art at the DMA," Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX, February 12- June 10, 2012
[1] "Visite au Musée du Louvre, ou Guide de l'amateur à l'exposition... (Année 1827-1828)... par une Société de Gens de Lettres et d'Artistes," Paris 1828, fig. P. 220.
[2] 1864 exhibition also cited as "Bd Italiens," Paris, no. 104 (as "Une tête de femme mulâtre") according to Lee Johnson, The Paintings of Eugene Delacroix: A Critical Catalogue, volume 1 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981), no. 88, pp 60.
[3] Prosper Dorbec, "L'Exposition des 'Vingt Peintres du XIXe Siecle' a la Galerie Georges Petit," (exhibition catalogue) Paris, 1910, p. 16.
Could not account for all A/V assets found on old teaching web platform?
- DMAmobi 706- includes the audio and video listed below as well as a link to Death of Sardanapolous listed as a contextual image.
- Heather MacDonald, "Dallas Museum of Art Collections smARTphone Video; Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Turban," 2012, audio file name- Collections_2012_MacDonald_Delacroix.m4v- may be the same as the mobi recording?
After 1827- before d. 1863: Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863)
Before d. 1872: Frederic Leblond (d. 1872), gift from the artist
After 1872: Mme. Leblond, widow of the above
By 1885- 1904: Dr. Gebauer, Mayor of Clery, Loiret, nephew of Frederic Leblond [1]
By 1906- c. 1938: Mme. Albert Esnault-Pelterie (d. c. 1938) [1] [2]
c. 1938- at least 1981: Mme. Jacque Meunie, née Popelin, granddaughter of the above
n.d.: Mme. Gaston Popelin [3]
n.d.: M Raymond Popelin [3]
1991-1994: Private collection, United States, purchased at Sotheby's London, "Important French 19th-Century Paintings and Drawings (From the Collection formed by Madame Esnault-Pelterie)," Dec. 3, 1991, lot 9, illus.
1994-2005: Private Collection, United States, purchased through Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art Inc., New York
From 2005: Dallas Museum of Art, purchased through Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art Inc., New York
Notes:
The primary source for the provenance prior to 1981 comes from Lee Johnson, The Paintings of Eugene Delacroix: A Critical Catalogue, volume 1 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981), no. 88, pp 60-61. Provenance also received from Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art, Inc., New York. The ownership for 1991-2005 comes from documentation provided by Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art Inc., New York (in the Collections Records Object File). Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[1] Dr. Gerbauer, Clery, sold this painting as lot 13, May 31, 1904. This is likely when Mme. Albert Esnault-Pelterie purchased the work, but it is confrimed in the collection according to L. Rouart, "Collection de Madame Esnault-Pelterie," Les Arts, June 1906, p. 4, illus.
[2] The spelling of this name may be Mme. Albert Esnault-Peltier according to a handwritten note on the records from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Department of Painting (copy in Collections Records Object File).
[3] This owner is listed following Mme. Albert Esnault-Pelterie in the records from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Department of Painting (copy in Collections Records Object File).
Catalogue essays specific to object
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Paris (France): TGN: 7008038
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
blue
portrait
study
brooch
race
shawl
turban
woman
three-quarter length
pyramidal
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
Collections smARTphone tour; Dr. Heather MacDonald discusses Eugene Delacroix's Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Turban (DMA collection, 2005.34.McD)
12936958: UMO- object number added to Piction
"Learn about Eugene Delacroix," DMA Collections smartphone tour, 2012. Audio file- collections_2012_delacroix.mp3
44997688: UMO
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
Death of Sardanapalus [Detail of woman in blue head scarf]
248949263: UMO
WEB RESOURCES
- Artble- The Death of Sardanapalus~Read about the subject, artist, style, and historical context for Eugene Delacroix's famous painting.
- Smarthistory- The Death of Sardanapalus~Watch Drs. Beth Harris and Steven Zucker give a brief introduction to this painting.
- Eugène Delacroix, Death of Sardanapolous (1827)~Look closely at this iconic painting and note the woman shown laying near the foot of the bed. She may be the same model who posed for Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Turban.
- Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa (c. 1503-1506)~Remind yourself what this iconic painting looks like and think about how it illustrates traditional, three-quarter length portraiture and uses a pyramidal composition.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 2005.34.McD
Category
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General Description
In this portrait, Eugène Delacroix uses the familiar conventions of Renaissance portraiture to lend a solemn dignity to the model. The solid pyramid formed by her body, set at a slight angle to the viewer, and the low horizon of the landscape behind her remind us of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa (1517, Musée du Louvre, Paris) . Although the sitter's blue turban and paisley shawl seem to allude to her status as an exotic foreigner, these accessories were probably studio props, much like the elaborate jeweled brooch, which appears in another portrait Delacroix painted at around the same time.
Although we do not know the name of the sitter for this portrait, she was certainly one of the non-European models that Delacroix employed during the 1820s while working on his monumental paintings of subjects drawn from Near Eastern history and Orientalist literature. The portrait could be the same one Delacroix exhibited at the 1827 Paris Salon under the title “Study of an Indian Woman’s Head.” The same model appears in Delacroix’s famous Death of Sardanapalus (1827, Musée du Louvre, Paris). Delacroix’s repeated representations of exotic women are a sign of the romantic appeal of foreign lands and peoples in his day, particularly the Middle East and North Africa. Although non-European women appear in many of his compositions, Delacroix did very few proper portraits, free of historical or foreign contexts.
Adapted from
- Heather MacDonald, DMA Label copy (2005.34.McD), August 2009.
- Bonnie Pitman, ed., Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2012), 182.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Artble- The Death of Sardanapalus~Read about the subject, artist, style, and historical context for Eugene Delacroix's famous painting.
- Smarthistory- The Death of Sardanapalus~Watch Drs. Beth Harris and Steven Zucker give a brief introduction to this painting.
- Eugène Delacroix, Death of Sardanapolous (1827)~Look closely at this iconic painting and note the woman shown laying near the foot of the bed. She may be the same model who posed for Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Turban.
- Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa (c. 1503-1506)~Remind yourself what this iconic painting looks like and think about how it illustrates traditional, three-quarter length portraiture and uses a pyramidal composition.
Notes
Add information to bibliographic sources, published references.
Text entries added to TMS record (Guide 2012 entry, Smartphone video script, and smartphone audio script)
Reformatted and revised provenance and exhibition history.
Entered three former titles according to the exhibition history records.
EXHIBITION HISTORY KNOWN? Y
1827: Salon, Paris, France, 1827-1828 (exhibited as Tête d'étude d'une Indienne, Head of an Indian Woman) [1]
1864: "Oeuvres d'Eugène Delacroix," Société Nationale des Beaux Arts, Paris, France [2]
1885: "Exposition Eugène Delacroix au profit de la souscription destinée á éléver á Paris un momument á sa mémoire," Société Nationale des Beaux Arts, Paris, France, March-April 1885, no. 86 (as "Aline la mulâtresse")
1910: "Vingt Peintres du XIXe Siècle, Chefs-d'oeuvre de l'école française," Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, France, no. 72 [3]
1930: "Eugène Delacroix: Centenaire du Romantisme," Musée du Louvre, Paris, France, no. 19
1937-1968: Philadelphia Museum of Art [long-term loan]
2012: "Face to Face: International Art at the DMA," Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX, February 12- June 10, 2012
[1] "Visite au Musée du Louvre, ou Guide de l'amateur à l'exposition... (Année 1827-1828)... par une Société de Gens de Lettres et d'Artistes," Paris 1828, fig. P. 220.
[2] 1864 exhibition also cited as "Bd Italiens," Paris, no. 104 (as "Une tête de femme mulâtre") according to Lee Johnson, The Paintings of Eugene Delacroix: A Critical Catalogue, volume 1 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981), no. 88, pp 60.
[3] Prosper Dorbec, "L'Exposition des 'Vingt Peintres du XIXe Siecle' a la Galerie Georges Petit," (exhibition catalogue) Paris, 1910, p. 16.
Could not account for all A/V assets found on old teaching web platform?
- DMAmobi 706- includes the audio and video listed below as well as a link to Death of Sardanapolous listed as a contextual image.
- Heather MacDonald, "Dallas Museum of Art Collections smARTphone Video; Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Turban," 2012, audio file name- Collections_2012_MacDonald_Delacroix.m4v- may be the same as the mobi recording?
After 1827- before d. 1863: Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863)
Before d. 1872: Frederic Leblond (d. 1872), gift from the artist
After 1872: Mme. Leblond, widow of the above
By 1885- 1904: Dr. Gebauer, Mayor of Clery, Loiret, nephew of Frederic Leblond [1]
By 1906- c. 1938: Mme. Albert Esnault-Pelterie (d. c. 1938) [1] [2]
c. 1938- at least 1981: Mme. Jacque Meunie, née Popelin, granddaughter of the above
n.d.: Mme. Gaston Popelin [3]
n.d.: M Raymond Popelin [3]
1991-1994: Private collection, United States, purchased at Sotheby's London, "Important French 19th-Century Paintings and Drawings (From the Collection formed by Madame Esnault-Pelterie)," Dec. 3, 1991, lot 9, illus.
1994-2005: Private Collection, United States, purchased through Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art Inc., New York
From 2005: Dallas Museum of Art, purchased through Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art Inc., New York
Notes:
The primary source for the provenance prior to 1981 comes from Lee Johnson, The Paintings of Eugene Delacroix: A Critical Catalogue, volume 1 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981), no. 88, pp 60-61. Provenance also received from Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art, Inc., New York. The ownership for 1991-2005 comes from documentation provided by Sayn-Wittgenstein Fine Art Inc., New York (in the Collections Records Object File). Exceptions and other supporting documents are noted.
[1] Dr. Gerbauer, Clery, sold this painting as lot 13, May 31, 1904. This is likely when Mme. Albert Esnault-Pelterie purchased the work, but it is confrimed in the collection according to L. Rouart, "Collection de Madame Esnault-Pelterie," Les Arts, June 1906, p. 4, illus.
[2] The spelling of this name may be Mme. Albert Esnault-Peltier according to a handwritten note on the records from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Department of Painting (copy in Collections Records Object File).
[3] This owner is listed following Mme. Albert Esnault-Pelterie in the records from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Department of Painting (copy in Collections Records Object File).
Catalogue essays specific to object
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Paris (France): TGN: 7008038
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
blue
portrait
study
brooch
race
shawl
turban
woman
three-quarter length
pyramidal
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
Collections smARTphone tour; Dr. Heather MacDonald discusses Eugene Delacroix's Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Turban (DMA collection, 2005.34.McD)
12936958: UMO- object number added to Piction
"Learn about Eugene Delacroix," DMA Collections smartphone tour, 2012. Audio file- collections_2012_delacroix.mp3
44997688: UMO
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
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Equals
2005.34.McD
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object_notes_2_c-0134.xml.nores