A collection of unused early French postcards showing reproductions of dry-point plates from “Les Modes Feminines du XIXe Siècle” by Henri Boutet.
Henri Boutet (1851-1919) was a French engraver and illustrator. He was born in Sainte-Hermine (Vendée) in 1851.
In the 1890s he specialised in the production of etchings representing women in negligees, resulting in his being nicknamed the "little master of the corset" or the "painter of the midinette”.
With his growing reputation, Boutet launched his own publishing house and sold his productions to periodicals such as Le Frou-frou, L'Assiette au beurre and Le Pêle-Mêle.
In 1902 he published "Les Modes Feminines du XIXe Siècle" which met with instant acclaim. His 100 dry-point etchings showed the development of fashion for each year from 1801 to 1900 - dry-point etching results in an image with intrinsic softness of texture. The illustrations were hand-coloured, with close attention to detail, and a treatment that showed his affection for the subject matter.
Another example of Boutet’s work from about this period in my collection is an apparently suffragette-themed etching of two women on bicycles.
He died in Paris on 9 June 1919.
+++++++++
Click on any image to go to the album. Use arrows to navigate through the album. Click on << to return to this page.
