3769

Comtesse Jean de Castellane, née Marie Dorothée de Talleyrand-Périgord 1899

Half-length to the left in three-quarter profile, head turned and looking to the right, wearing a black satin evening gown, embroidered with gold on the sleeve, with a wide winged black lace collar behind, an ornate gold brooch and a diamond crescent tiara

Oil on canvas, 87 x 68 cm (34 ¼ x 26 ¾ in.)

Inscribed lower left: László F.E. / 1899 x   

Sitters’ Book I, f. 29: Talleyrand-Périgord Comtesse Jean de / Castellane / La Mulotière 16 octobre 1899

De László painted preparatory sketches for the present portrait, making two studies on either side of a piece of board, which was later split to produce two individual works. One of them represents the comtesse de Castellane in three-quarter profile to the right [13167], while the verso, much more worked up and signed [111229], is extremely close to the present composition.

This portrait was painted in Touraine, at la Mulotière, a country house rented by comte and comtesse de Castellane. De László was originally only commissioned to paint the portrait of comte Jean de Castellane [3762], but the artist, who arrived at la Mulotière in early October, eventually painted his wife too, as well as a second portrait of comte Jean [3765]. These were his first commissions in France. She was happy with her portrait, but comparing it with her husband’s paintings, she wrote to de László: “My portrait is also very pleasing, but most of the time it is the ones of my husband which are preferred.”^[1]

Comtesse Jean was painted again in 1905, wearing an evening dress [3770]. In 1922, de László painted their sister-in-law, the marquise de Castellane [3787], and in 1930, their niece, comtesse Georges de Castellane [3786].

Marie Dorothée Louise de Talleyrand Périgord was born on 17 November 1862 at Valençay, the daughter of Louis de Périgord, 3rd duc de Talleyrand et Sagan (1811-1898), and Rachel de Castellane (1823-1895). Valençay was the Château of her great uncle, Charles Maurice Talleyrand (1754-1838) one of the greatest statesmen Europe has ever known. She was named after her grandmother, Dorothée, the famous duchesse de Dino (1793-1862). In July 1881 she married Prince Karl Egon IV zu Fürstenberg (1852-1896) in Sagan and secondly (two years after the death of her first husband) she married comte Jean de Castellane. Like her grandmother, the comtesse de Castellane was much more than just a wealthy society wife. She became an active member and eventually vice-president of the French Red Cross. She was awarded ‘la croix d’honneur et de dévotion de St Jean de Jerusalem.’ She died in Paris on 17 July 1948.

EXHIBITED:         

•Műcsarnok, Hungarian Fine Art Society, Budapest, Téli kiállítás [Winter Exhibition], 1899/1900, no. 476

•Salon de la société des artistes français, Paris, 1900, no. 755

•The French Gallery, London, A Series of Portraits and Studies By Philip A. de László, M.V.O., June, 1923, no. 49

LITERATURE:  

•Rutter, Owen. Portrait of a Painter, London, 1939, p. 178

•Chaleyssin, Patrick, La peinture mondaine de 1870 à 1960, Celia Editions, 1993, p. 38, ill. pl. 63

•Hart-Davis, Duff, in collaboration with Caroline Corbeau-Parsons, De László: His Life and Art, Yale University Press, 2010, p. 60-61, 90 ill. 33

•Hart-Davis, Duff, László Fülöp élete és festészete [Philip de László's Life and Painting], Corvina, Budapest, 2019, ill. 44

•Field, Katherine, Philip Alexius de László; 150th Anniversary Exhibition, de Laszlo Archive Trust, 2019, p. 10, ill. p. 11

•Field, Katherine ed., Gábor Bellák and Beáta Somfalvi, Philip de László (1869-1937); "I am an Artist of the World", Magyar Nemzeti Galéria, 2019, p. 20

•DLA043-0046, Dr. Gabriel von Térey, “Die Winterausstellung im Künstlerhause”, Pester Lloyd, 20 December 1899

•DLA140-0083, Le Journal de Département de I’Indre, 20 April 1900 [page unknown]

•DLA068-0077, letter from Comtesse Jean de Castellane to de László, 25 February 1901

CC 2009