"Blanche Barretta" antique photogravure after the 1880' painting by Louise Abbema, engraved by Goupil, 1881; printed on heavy stock paper; signed in plate "Louise Abbema, Pinx." and "Gravure Goupil et Cie." The Masterpieces of French Art series.

Design 7" x 9.3/4" [177mm x 248mm], the entire plate is 11.1/2" x 15" [290mm x 380mm]; some edge and corner wear, 1/4" crease at the top margin, some foxing, very good condition [see photos].

Blanche Barretta (1855-1939), was a French actress, protegee of Sarah Bernhardt. Blanche was born in Paris in 1862 and made her debut at the Theatre Comedie-Francaise in 1875, and immediately captured the hearts of the Parisians. In the 1880s, in recognition of her artistic success, her portrait by Loise Abbema was exhibited in the Comedie-Francaise.

Louise Abbema (1853-1927) was a French painter, sculptor, and designer. She was born into a wealthy Parisian family, who were well connected in the local artistic community. She began painting in her early teens, and studied under such notables of the period as Charles Joshua Chaplin, Jean-Jacques Henner and Carolus-Duran. She first received recognition for her work at age 23 when she painted a portrait of Sarah Bernhardt, her lifelong friend. She went on to paint portraits of other contemporary notables, and also painted panels and murals which adorned the Paris Town Hall, the Paris Opera House, numerous theatres including the "Theatre Sarah Bernhardt", and the "Palace of the Colonial Governor" at Dakar, Senegal. She worked in an academic and impressionistic styles, painting with light and rapid brushstrokes.

She was a regular exhibitor at the Paris Salon, where she received an honorable mention for her panels in 1881. Abbema was also among the female artists whose works were exhibited in the Women's Building at the 1893 World Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Among the many honors conferred upon Abbema was Palme Academiques, 1887 and nomination as "Official Painter of the Third Republic." She was also awarded a bronze medal at the 1900 Exposition Universelle. In 1906 she was decorated as Chevalier of the Order of the Legion d'honneur. Abbema was included in the 2018 exhibit Women in Paris 1850-1900.

In 1870s-1890s, Goupil & Cie were the leading art dealers in 19th century France, with headquarters in Paris and a network of branches in London, Brussels, The Hague, Berlin and Vienna, as well as in New York and Australia. Instrumental for this expansion was the "Ateliers Photographiques", a plant north of Paris, in Asnieres, which took up its work in 1869. The photogravures created in this plant dominated the world art market of 1880s-1890s.

The creation of the photogravure plate was a complicated process requiring a work by a photographer and experienced master-engraver. First, a copper plate was coated with a light-sensitive gelatin tissue which had been exposed to a film positive, and then etched, resulting in a high-quality intaglio print that can reproduce the detail and continuous tones of a photograph. It is a manual process. Therefore, the quality of the photogravure depends on the masterly execution by the engraver.

Photogravures were engraved on copper plates and leave a plate impression in the paper. Due to relative softness of copper, the editions of photogravures were limited to a few thousand copies similarly to copper engravings and etchings.

Artwork will be mailed unframed.

Rates vary per zone/ country, we will adjust shipping costs with the invoice.

US: Priority (c.2-8 days) ------------ $20.50
Canada: 1st Class (c.2-6 weeks) ---- $27.50
World: 1st Class (c.2-8 weeks) ----- $35.50