In an essay by French poet and playwright Théophile Gautier entitled De la mode (1858), he encouraged contemporary artists to seek inspiration in the shimmering Haute Couture gowns by designer Charles Frederick Worth (1825–1895). The appeal apparently had a positive effect, as evidenced by the magnificent portrait of Madame Feydeau, a prominent figure in Parisian society at the time. The artist who received the calling is Carolus-Duran, who also possessed the technical skill to pay tribute to the shimmering silks of Worth's creations.
Madame Ernest Feydeau dit La Dame au chien, by Carolus-Duran (1870)
Technique: oil on canvas
C. F. Worth, considered the father of Haute Couture, was the couturier not only to the élite of late 19th-century Parisian society but also to European royalty. As expected, these women were photographed in his opulent designs, and that is precisely what we treasure to this day as a testament to the fashion of the time. But even more eloquent is the visual record of how Europe's highest social class dressed.
Armenoville, le soir du Grand-Prix, by Henri Gervex (1905)
Portrait d’Ida Rubinstein, by Antonio de La Gandara (1913)
Technique: oil on canvas
Portrait de Madame René Préjelan, by Antonio de La Gandara, (circa 1905)
Technique: oil on canvas
Fortunately, Worth's sons succeeded him at the Maison, maintaining the same creative approach, and thus, the portraits of the dresses became the stars of the early 20th century. Antonio La Gandara (president of the Association des Peintres Costumiers de la Mode) depicts the dancer Ida Rubinstein, an icon of the Belle Epoque, wearing a very flattering outfit that she had worn at the rehearsal for La Chèvrefeuille in April 1913.
The other portrait by La Gandara is of the first wife of the artist René Préjelan (1877-1968), who posed for the painter wearing a Worth dress with a strap that falls carelessly off her shoulder.
P.S.: The paintings are part of the exhibition Worth Inventer La Haute Couture at the Petit Palais in Paris.
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