Madame de Lapyrière by Claude-Marie Dubufe

Discover a famous painter of society portraits from the first half of the 19th century.

Presentation of the work

Claude-Marie Dubufe (1790–1864), Madame de Lapyrière, c. 1835–1840. Oil on canvas, 209 x 143.5 cm. Château de Bussy-Rabutin.
© CMN / Colombe Clier

This portrait of Madame Augustin de Lapyrière, née Elise-Cécile Cardon, depicts her in a pose that is part melancholic, part inspired, typical of Romanticism: her gaze is pensive, with a quill and paper within easy reach, along with a few closed books. Leaning on an orange-coloured sofa, whose colour matches the large drape in the background, her slender black silhouette stands out, emphasising her bare shoulders in the fashion of the early July Monarchy. With the return of corsets, ‘gigot’ sleeves and more voluminous skirts, the silhouette is structured, and the dresses are plain, generally in dark colours. Her hair is styled in ‘clotildes’ – the precursors to the ‘anglaises’ – cascading around her neck and parted down the middle.

Painted by Claude-Marie Dubufe, this portrait was most likely painted between 1835 and 1840. Indeed, during those years the artist submitted three paintings to the Paris Salon under the name ‘Madame de L.’, suggesting that this painting was exhibited there. Claude-Marie Dubufe enjoyed great renown amongst Parisian and French high society, having begun his career as a portrait painter as early as 1811. His success earned him an exhibition at the Salon almost every year. A rival to Franz Xaver Winterhalter, Édouard Dubufe became one of the most famous official portraitists of the Second Empire. Close to those in power, he painted the official portraits of Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie.

The portrait housed at the Château de Bussy-Rabutin is inspired by the grand portraits of Ingres, with sharply defined lines. The rendering of fabrics and accessories is undoubtedly the most remarkable aspect of his works. The critic Champfleury reported in 1846 that ‘Monsieur Dubufe was adored by the women of his time almost as much as Alexandrine, the dressmaker. How elegantly he dressed them, how well he knew how to show them off, and how flattering he was’.

In this portrait, Madame Augustin de Lapyrière appears not only as an elegant and cultured woman, but also as one with a passion for writing. As the wife of Augustin de Lapyrière, the extremely wealthy Receiver-General of Finances for the department of the Seine, she no doubt shared his taste for the arts. He was, in fact, one of the most important art collectors of the 1820s, prior to the family’s first bankruptcy. He particularly appreciated^17th-century Dutch paintings, such as works by Vermeer and Rembrandt, as well as^17th-century French and Spanish paintings [Catalogue of precious paintings and other curiosities comprising the collection of Mr Lapeyrière, General Collector of Taxes for the Department of the Seine. By Henry Bon-Thomas, Expert Commissioner of the Royal Museums].

There is a more traditional miniature portrait of Madame Augustin de Lapeyrière, painted by Daniel Saint. Once again, a woman of letters is depicted holding a book, but this time set against a backdrop conducive to daydreaming. The pose is distinctly more contrived, despite the sense of movement created by the sheen of the satin dress and the casually draped shawl.