Le Visage Encadré: Madame Helleu

Helleu trained in Paris under the Orientalist painter Jean-Léon Gérôme and consorted with leading painters of the time, including Degas, Whistler, and Sargent. In 1886, he married Alice Guérin, who, along with their children, became his favorite subject. Helleu became known for his ability to produce drypoint portraits of fashionable women. Using a stylus to freely draw forms onto the copper printing plate, Helleu captured the essence of elegance and nonchalance typical of the Belle Époque period. Here Helleu created a series of impressions, using a combination of techniques and colors to variously highlight different details of the sitter’s appearance.