An undisputed icon of 19th-century photography, this print entitled "Pierrot à la corbeille de fruits" (Pierrot with a fruit basket) from the series of "têtes d'expression de Pierrot" (Pierrot's expressive heads) is one of the masterpieces of primitive photography.
The "pierrot" by Nadar
On sale on 10 November 2022 at Millon
Félix NADAR (1820-1910) and Adrien TOURNACHON (1825-1903)
Pierrot with a fruit basket, 1854-1855
Print on tanned gelatin paper (known as "leather varnish"), dry stamp in the image and signature stamp on the mount
28.1 x 20.4 cm (36.1 x 28.2 cm)
An undisputed icon of 19th-century photography, this print entitled "Pierrot à la corbeille de fruits" (Pierrot with a fruit basket) from the series of "têtes d'expression de Pierrot" (Pierrot's expressive heads) is one of the masterpieces of primitive photography.
The photographic techniques of the time did not allow instantaneous photography. But taking this photograph shattered all the concepts of the time. The two Tournachon brothers overturned these practices, freezing the "expression of passions": surprise, laughter, pain, drunkenness and lust, mimicked by Charles Deburau (1829-1873).
This series, focusing on the figure of expression, was intended to promote the Nadar-Tournachon studio at the 1855 Paris World Fair, and was awarded the gold medal.
In addition to his sense of movement and mimicry, Deburau's photographs of Pierrot, which are exceptional in size, are remarkable for their mastery of light, creating a play of contrasts and volume between the white costume and the black background.
Bibliography
Nadar, les années créatrices: 1854-1860, Paris, Musée d'Orsay, 7 June - 11 September 1994 [and] New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 3 April - 9 July 1995, Réunion des Musées Nationaux (RMN), 1994, p.60.
