The image shows a drawing of two people from the waist up. The central figure is sitting on a chair, poised with her head slightly tilted. She has delicate facial features, defined hair, and wears an elaborate hat with large feathers. The second figure stands behind her, possibly assisting with the hat or hair, wearing a bonnet. The seated woman wears a light-colored gown with a deep neckline. On the table in front of her are a comb and a framed mirror. The background depicts simple vertical and horizontal lines, suggesting a room with a window.
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The image shows a drawing of two people from the waist up. The central figure is sitting on a chair, poised with her head slightly tilted. She has delicate facial features, defined hair, and wears an elaborate hat with large feathers. The second figure stands behind her, possibly assisting with the hat or hair, wearing a bonnet. The seated woman wears a light-colored gown with a deep neckline. On the table in front of her are a comb and a framed mirror. The background depicts simple vertical and horizontal lines, suggesting a room with a window.

National Gallery of Art · Drawing

Avant la fête persanne

Jean-Louis Forain

Date
1912
Medium
brush and black ink, wash, and black crayon on wove paper
Dimensions
overall: 39 x 26.1 cm (15 3/8 x 10 1/4 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Accession number
1943.3.3922
Credit line
Rosenwald Collection
Time span
1901 to 1925
Department
CG-E

Subjects and terms

  • French
  • Impressionist
  • toilette
  • genre
Provenance

Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], Jenkintown, PA; gift to NGA, 1943.

Inscription

"forain" lower right composition, graphite, artist's hand. "Avant la fete persanne 1912" lower left margin, graphite, artist's hand. "A.2398A" lower right margin, graphite, unknown hand. Verso: none.

Marks

"LRJ" verso, black stamped ink, (Lugt 1760b). "National Gallery of Art" verso, black stamped ink, (Lugt 1932d).

Watermarks

None.

NGA object ID 7040. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.