Alfred Stevens Emotioned
Alfred Stevens
Brussels 1823 - 1906
Emotioned
Oil on canvas
Signed on the lower left AStevens
73,4 x 53 cm ; 28⅞ by 20⅞ in.
Catalogue Note:
Alfred Stevens, a Belgian painter based in Paris during the Second Empire, focused on depicting female figures in refined interiors, where fabrics and decorative objects play a central role.
In Emotionnée, an elegant woman, secluded behind a folding screen, appears troubled by the contents of a letter whose message remains unknown. Her hand resting on her abdomen suggests a possible pregnancy and raises the possibility of romantic abandonment, despite the model’s elegance and apparent ease. The composition, marked by great restraint, pairs the female figure with a minimalist setting. The ambiguity of the scene leaves it up to the viewer to imagine the circumstances, without the suggested emotion overshadowing the aesthetic exploration.
The refinement of the fabrics, the precision of the details, and the almost tactile quality of the surfaces attest to Steven’s virtuosity; for him, “the execution of a beautiful painting is pleasing to the touch,” as he wrote in his Impressions on Painting in 1886 (A. Stevens, Impressions on Painting, New-York, 1886). Japonism is evident in the folding screen, the furniture, the understated layout, and the attention paid to decorative surfaces, while the streamlined composition evokes certain explorations by Édouard Manet.
A similar composition, Émue or La Lettre de rupture (Musée d’Orsay, Paris, inv. RF 1983 26), features similar motifs, notably the folding screen and the plant. This work invites viewers to consider a possible romantic breakup, though this interpretation cannot be taken as certain. In this way, Stevens maintains the mystery of the scene, while transforming the female figure, the fabrics, and the objects surrounding her into a harmonious pictorial whole.
Provenance:
Madame Caillet, Brussels;
Madame Robert Janssens de Mot, Brussels (grandmother of the present owner, by 1928); Thence by descent.
Literature:
Gustave Van Zype, Les frères Stevens, Brussels, 1936, no. 159;
Paul Caso, 'La rétrospective Alfred Stevens à Charleroi a ressuscité la grâce de la femme du Second Empire', in Le Soir, 1975 (cited);
Christiane Lefebvre, Alfred Stevens: 1823-1906, Paris, 2006, p. 145, fig. 172 (repr.);
Danielle Derrey-Capon, Brigitte de Patoul, Dominique Marechal, Alfred Stevens (1823-1906) et le panorama de l'Histoire du Siècle, Brussels, 2009, p. 54 (repr.), p. 55 (cited).
Alfred Stevens
Brussels 1823 - 1906
Emotioned
Oil on canvas
Signed on the lower left AStevens
73,4 x 53 cm ; 28⅞ by 20⅞ in.
Catalogue Note:
Alfred Stevens, a Belgian painter based in Paris during the Second Empire, focused on depicting female figures in refined interiors, where fabrics and decorative objects play a central role.
In Emotionnée, an elegant woman, secluded behind a folding screen, appears troubled by the contents of a letter whose message remains unknown. Her hand resting on her abdomen suggests a possible pregnancy and raises the possibility of romantic abandonment, despite the model’s elegance and apparent ease. The composition, marked by great restraint, pairs the female figure with a minimalist setting. The ambiguity of the scene leaves it up to the viewer to imagine the circumstances, without the suggested emotion overshadowing the aesthetic exploration.
The refinement of the fabrics, the precision of the details, and the almost tactile quality of the surfaces attest to Steven’s virtuosity; for him, “the execution of a beautiful painting is pleasing to the touch,” as he wrote in his Impressions on Painting in 1886 (A. Stevens, Impressions on Painting, New-York, 1886). Japonism is evident in the folding screen, the furniture, the understated layout, and the attention paid to decorative surfaces, while the streamlined composition evokes certain explorations by Édouard Manet.
A similar composition, Émue or La Lettre de rupture (Musée d’Orsay, Paris, inv. RF 1983 26), features similar motifs, notably the folding screen and the plant. This work invites viewers to consider a possible romantic breakup, though this interpretation cannot be taken as certain. In this way, Stevens maintains the mystery of the scene, while transforming the female figure, the fabrics, and the objects surrounding her into a harmonious pictorial whole.
Provenance:
Madame Caillet, Brussels;
Madame Robert Janssens de Mot, Brussels (grandmother of the present owner, by 1928); Thence by descent.
Literature:
Gustave Van Zype, Les frères Stevens, Brussels, 1936, no. 159;
Paul Caso, 'La rétrospective Alfred Stevens à Charleroi a ressuscité la grâce de la femme du Second Empire', in Le Soir, 1975 (cited);
Christiane Lefebvre, Alfred Stevens: 1823-1906, Paris, 2006, p. 145, fig. 172 (repr.);
Danielle Derrey-Capon, Brigitte de Patoul, Dominique Marechal, Alfred Stevens (1823-1906) et le panorama de l'Histoire du Siècle, Brussels, 2009, p. 54 (repr.), p. 55 (cited).
