Author(s):
monnier, henry bonaventure (paris, 07–06–1799 - paris, 03–01–1877 — 3–6–1877), designer
delpech, françois seraphin (orléans, 1778 - 1825), printer-lithographer
other title: moral and philosophical sketches (series title)
type(s) of object(s): graphic arts, print
name(s): print
materials and techniques: vellum paper, watercolor, lithography
description:
plate from the moral and philosophical sketches series
marks, inscriptions, hallmarks:
inscription - under the line on the left: "henry monnier" and on the right: "i. Lith. De delpech"
legend - under the image: the supernumerary / my little darling let's not miss this evening / we wouldn't have your nomination
iconographic description:
in a simply furnished room, a grisette gets ready while a hairdresser fixes her hairstyle. She is in a negligee, her corset visible. The hairdresser is dressed in a puffed-sleeved shirt and fitted pants. In the background there is a bed, a chest of drawers, an armchair on which a dress is placed, a fireplace on which a top hat and a bottle are placed, as well as a mirror. Actor, playwright and designer, henry monnier helped illustrate la comédie humaine. His engravings of administrative morals, and especially his play scenes from bureaucratic life, clearly inspired balzac for his novel la femme supérieure, renamed les employés. The same references to the customs of their time often inspired the two artists in parallel on numerous subjects as we can see in the following extract: "-- but be quiet, sir, i expected better from you. That is to say that a hairdresser, i am not saying a good hairdresser, because one is or one is not a hairdresser. . A hairdresser. . It is more difficult to find. . Than. What can i say?. That one. I don't know what. A minister. (stay put) no, because you can't judge the value of a minister, the streets are full of ministers, no, that's not enough! a hairdresser, sir, a man who can guess your soul and your habits, he needs what constitutes a philosopher. We are worth the conquest they want to make the day they get their hair done to win a triumph, that is to say, a hairdresser. Hey, i'm talking to you, i'm pretty much what you can find. Without bragging, people know me. Hey! well, no, i think there must be better. Execution, that’s the thing! ah! if women gave me carte blanche, if i could execute whatever ideas came to me. You see, i have a hell of an imagination! but women do not lend themselves to it, they have their plans, they poke you with their fingers or with a comb, when you are gone, in our delicious buildings which should be engraved and collected, because our works, sir, only last a few hours. A great hairdresser, hey! it would be something like carême and vestris, in their parts. . . " [excerpt from les comédiens sans le savoir, by honoré de balzac]
themes / subjects / places represented:
social subject, morals, grisette, hairstyle, domestic interior
institution: maison de balzac
inventory number: not provided. Unknown date
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