Lot n° 261
Estimation :
200 - 300
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"Miniature eye" on ivory (Elephantidae spp*), - Lot 261
"Miniature eye" on ivory (Elephantidae spp*),
Signed below Autissier for Louis Marie Autissier (1772- 1830),
in a square wooden frame, (worn, missing)
Miniature diameter: 2.7 cm ;
The miniature eye: a royal passion turned fashion At the turn of the XIXᵉ century, a piece of jewelry made its mark in the English aristocracy and then in the rest of Europe: the miniature eye.
History attributes the birth of this type of painting to a surge of royal love. In 1784, the young Prince of Wales, the future George IV, fell in love with Maria Fitzherbert, a Catholic widow he could not marry without his father's consent. Shunned, the young woman went into exile. A year later, the prince sent her a tiny portrait of his right eye, painted by Richard Cosway: a silent message - I see you, think of me. Maria returned, and the two secretly joined forces.
From this gesture, a fashion was born: the "eye portrait". These miniatures, painted on ivory and set with gold, pearls or diamonds, were passed around between lovers, friends and relatives. The eye, a fragment of the face, became a symbol of love, fidelity and presence.
According to historian Hanneke Grootenboer, these images represented not just an eye, but a gaze - a reciprocal link between the one who sees and the one who is seen. Ephemeral, the fashion faded in the 1830s, except for Queen Victoria, who remained faithful to the jewels of remembrance. Today, these "miniature eyes" remain intimate witnesses to a time when to love was still to look and be looked at.
Louis Marie Autissier
Born in Vannes in 1772 and naturalized Belgian, Louis Marie Autissier is considered the founder of miniature art in Belgium. After a spell in the revolutionary army, he trained in Paris, then settled in Brussels in 1796, where he became a founding member of the Société de peinture, sculpture et architecture.
A virtuoso miniaturist, he exhibited throughout Europe - from Paris to Amsterdam - and trained a generation of artists, including Alexandre de Latour and Louis Henri de Fontenay. His works, of almost photographic precision, combine sensitivity and brilliance. Today, they feature in prestigious collections, including the Cincinnati Art Museum, Sweden's Nationalmuseum and the British Royal Collection.
*Pre-Convention Elephantidae spp (I/A) ivory specimen, prior to July 1, 1947 and therefore in compliance with EC regulation 338/97 of 09/12/1996 art.2-W SCE and SPMC, and prior to July 1, 1975 and therefore in compliance with the French decrees of May 4, 2017 and January 2022.
To leave the European Union, a CITES re-export permit is required.
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