There is music. The cafe is filled with revellers. Their drunken laughter is loud, but the seasons slip away, and they need something to remember.
A year has passed, and I still light my candles for the window and hope fades like summer into fall. The mirror has no mercy, a reminder of all that has passed through these hands. There is no holding back the past or what lies ahead.
The night deepens as we raise our glasses to the seasons of honey and fire and the aching memory of lovers slipped away.
Snakes and Metaphors
suspended
At the top of the stairs the hours pass hurriedly, lovers flee the break of dawn. Subdued seduction , silhouettes in flickering candlelight.
In black tie and silk gowns, the bourgeoisie sip cognac , exhale circlets of smoke from cigarillos into the softly whirring blades of a bamboo fan.
The walls are thin and the wood floor is bare. Music drifts upward, slips under my door, “La Vie En Rose”, the sighs of desperate lovers , their bodies pressed against one another.
At my mirror I braid silver thread through my hair. Should the Frenchman return I am wearing the dress he likes. Last night he signaled with a stone at my window .
He has taught me how to say I love you and other endearing terms in his tongue. At the hollow of my throat I dab a bit of the perfume he bought for me in Berlin. I’m not sure that is true but I like the scent.
He wants me to follow him but he is not my kind. The weak can not survive love that is bound to die nor can they forgive.
Holly for contributing your luscious poems to this collaboration & to Gigifor being the hallway model (where the music notation is actually the first 5 bars to La Vie en Rose).
Robbie invited me to chat technique about my fashion drawings and portraits on her blog. I’m having a blast over there, so if you haven’t already pop over and enjoy the groove!
Dahlings, welcome to Teagan’s “Reinvention Series”! I am honoured to be her third guest.
One thing about gathering the reinvention pics is one does go back over a part of a life. Lots of reflecting ensues. For me this has been a positive experience. So head over to Teagan’s and check it all out!
To kick things off, Teagan’s Reinvention Androids put on a fashion show for us. One good show deserves another! So, here’s a retro collection of Art Gowns drawings – just for fun!
It was a nothing, no where, no how day. No one seemed to know who sent the invitation?
Up for adventure and treasure, Genevieve donned her favourite party dress. Arriving at the address on the back of the invite, she found herself in beautiful garden that lead to a porch with 2 cats on it.
In America it was the Gilded Age, in the United Kingdom it was the Victorian era and in France it was La Belle Époque.
Dahlings, Welcome to the 1880’s
Inspired by Tissot’s fashion prints of the era, Art Gowns has designed its own gowns, and gone back in time to show them off. Made possible by Venus and the moon, we went through the the Tangle-Heart and moved backwards 137 years.
Rebecca, the first to land in 1888, went about setting up a fashion show at Le Chat Noir. Her palazzo pants, carefully hidden by the period’s draping fabrics, allowed her to move around without arousing suspicion.
The venue was a one night extravaganza at La Chat Noir in the Montmartre district of Paris.
Thought to be the first modern night club, it was opened on 18 November 1881 and closed in 1897.
NOW, Here’s Rebecca!
Thank you, Rene!We have a thrilling show tonight, so let me get right at it, and present les beaux modèles de la Belle Époque!
First out on the stage is Modèle de Robes d’Art, Shey.Shey is dressed for afternoon tea or “gouter” as known in Paris. Her fan’s print is inspired by the new Japanese aesthetics.
Next out is Gigi dressed for a night at the theare! Her asymetric ruffles play second fiddle only to her Statue of Liberty inspired diadème.
Now, back from her gown change is Mademoiselle Rene with a very Special announcement!
Thank you, Rebecca! Mes Chéris, all of us at Art Gowns put our design hats on and created a special La Belle Époque Super Hero outfit for Princess Blue Holly. Art Gowns presents:
Princess Blue Holly in la Belle ÉpoqueSuper Hero Outfit
What an honour! Thank you to all! This is a momentous outfit! I love the boots, and they only take a half hour each to button up.
It must have been very difficult to be a female Super Hero in the 1880’s. So much beautiful fabric would make flying a bit of a challenge. Snagging would be an issue and the corsetry is somewhat confining when delivering the martial arts moves.
Check out the Freedom difference between 2025 and 1888! ……. aaaand back to Rebecca!
Thank you Princess Blue Holly! You look simply marvellous. That is one special outfit.
Perfect for taking the carriage to the fashion shops, Dale wears a travelling jacket of pinstripe twill, with brocade fishtail skirt completed with a voile tail under a ruched and layered silk bussel. A dainty reticule is the perfect accessory.
It’s a sunny day and Rene is back in another costume change. This is a miracle considering all the buttons she had to do up, as the zipper was not invented until 1917. She is off to the museum with a rose detail parasol and rose reticule.
It’s “dinner at eight” and the opera forModèle de Robes d’Art, Marina. A rose print corset top with a panière effect from the waist to hips is a lovely accentuation to the fitted fishtail skirt.
Holly is off to a fancy party in white silk with red ruffle corset top and a skirt of silk Swiss dot. A lush red bow sets off the rose detailed bussel and tail with ruffles on the inside and out.
I’m sad to say the show has come to an end, buts let’s hear it for Mademoiselle Rene, who shall bid you adieu.
Mes Chéris, bon soir! We hate to leave, but it’s time to return to the future! Please enjoy Arabesque No.1 by Claude Debussy, while the beaux modèles de la Belle Époque make their departures.
No one saw when the AGM’s made their way back through the Tangle-Heart as contrails. All landed safely in the Bosque by Tim’s.
However, as Rene began her journey to the future she encountered a strange energy.
She landed back at Tim’s in Rebecca’s Black Bamboo, but she wasn’t herself, nor all there.
No one was worried! All were sure Princess Blue Holly would save her.
However and unfortunately, as you and I know, Rene IS Princess Blue Holly!
This is the painting that lured me to the exhibit.
The Convalescent -1872
This young woman’s housecoat, patterned yellow pillow and tropical plants were introduced to Europe via colonial conquests in the southern hemisphere.
Juxtaposed to these items that signify the speed of travel, trade and fashion are the middle class woman’s long slow hours of recuperating health.
The Seasons
Tissot drew on the art historical tradition of women and natural cycles; ie. young women and spring.
Ippitsusai Buncho (Japanese, active 1765 – 1792), Kabuki. Segawa Kikunojo in female role of Ohatsu in“Yoni Osaka Nitsuino Myoto”
The elongated form, and stylized blades of grass in the foreground shows the influence of Japanese woodblock prints.
Spring Morning (1878)
Spring (1878)
Limiting the number of prints to a plate (which adds value through scarcity) was unusual prior to the second half of the 1800’s.
The simplest way to cancel a run is to rut the metal plate with deep lines.
PRINTS MADE BEFORE & AFTER PLATE CANCELLATION
Summer (1878)
October (1878)
“He also depicted women in current fashions, presenting them as both timeless and contemporary.”
Despite the racial diversity of Europe at the time, Tissot’s artworks focus on white women.
The Thames
This image of a naval officer cruising the polluted Thames River with 2 women (Must be prostitutes!) was deemed “thoroughly and willfully vulgar”by a critic.
The Thames (1876)
The British saw this as immoral French art, which included Impressionism.
Emigrants (1880)
Tissot captured the global flow at bustling ports along the Thames.
This print highlights the artist’s expertise in capturing nautical scenes.
Tissot had an infinitude for portraying women in ambiguous situations.
This emigrant woman leaving a ship with her baby makes one wonder where her journey will lead.
Souvenirs of the Siege of Paris
This collection recounts Tissot’s time as a sharpshooter with The French National Guard during the Franco-Prussian War (1870 – 1871)
Foyer of the Comédie-Française, Recollection of the Siege of Paris (1877)
Tissot’s images of dead or ailing men depict specific historical events and locations. They were viewed by Victorians as accurate reportage.
La Frileuse
Kathleen Newton (1854 – 1882)
Kathleen Turner was a young Irish divorcée and mother, who lived with Tissot in London until her early death at 28 from tuberculosis. Tissot often used her as a model.
Iterations of the same pose
Tissot’s prints were affordable, attracting middle-class and international buyers. His Victorian themes were adored and his prints circulated the globe, amassing the artist a small fortune.
The Women of Paris
Following the death of Kathleen in 1882, Tissot returned to Paris.
Tissot exhibited 15 paintings and a corresponding print series of modern Parisian women from different social classes, each accompanied by a short essay by a prominent French writer.
Critics panned the show as behind the times. They claimed he painted “the same Englishwoman” repeatedly.
“Following the critical failure of his exhibition, Tissot never focused on the theme ofmodern womanhood again.”
Tissot, a name I hadn’t heard much. Then the AGO announced an exhibit featuring their collection of 2 oil paintings, 1 watercolour and 30 etchings on paper.
A Most Enchanting Day at the AGO
The Fashionable Beauty (1885)
There were several variations of the “Fashionable Beauty”
This one was from the hip up.
Some were more whispy, some more dense
Camera on portrait stage setting
In the last decades of the nineteenth century, James Tissot portrayed women within the contradictions of the period.
Political Woman (1885)
Modernity via the speed of travel, fashion and commodity culture is juxtaposed with the constraint of women’s every day lives.
Flaunting the “Masculine” Realm
The Newspaper (1883)
A well dressed woman reads a newspaper. The fashionable Japanese-influenced wallpaper lining the wall informs of her engagement with the outside world & knowledge of trends.
Fashion magazines and novels were appropriate for Victorian women.
Newspapers were linked to men, as they symbolized factual knowledge and interest in global politics. Although, the image below depicts another reason a woman would read a newspaper.
Without a Dowry (1885)
The above image portrays a young woman and her mother in a Parisian park. The black clothing suggests they are mourning a male relative, and are without a dowry. The daughter sits in an available position, while the mother searches the newspapers for marriage offers.
Dreaming (1881)
More About the Artist
“Best known for his paintings of fashionable figures, Tissot began his career in Paris. While he turned down Edgar Degas’s invitation to exhibit with the impressionists, he shared the groups desire to portray scenes of modern life in an innovative style. He moved to London in 1871 after fighting in the Franco-Prussian War, and became a popular painter of Victorian scenes, particularly those showing young women in typically modern moments, before returning to France in 1882.” – Art Gallery of Ontario
Portico – National Gallery, London (1878)
Moral Ambiguity, a Central Theme
Sunday Morning (1883)
A well dressed young woman walks to church holding a bible. Her raised eyebrows and tentative gaze pose the question, does she need to atone for her sins, or is she nervous about being late for service?
Horizontal women’s bodies were lubricous from a voyeuristic perspective.
Slumbering female figures had erotic connotations in the Victorian Era, especially in semi-conscious states like dreaming or sleeping.
The Fan (1876)
Now discredited – The below woman’s twisted hand was indicative of the pathological disorder – hysteria. This “chic” female disease was considered fashionably feminine and modern.
Sleeping Woman (1876)
The moral ambiguity of Tissot’s images was integral to their popular appeal.
British critics claimed they were too, risqué, too French.
The Hammock (1880)
A Personal Fascination
Other than the title, I know only that the etching below is in the Hippodrome (ℹ︎ Met Museum site). I was mesmerized by it. All that skin makes the costumes seem so modern and the Statue of Liberty crowns were piquing.
The Ladies of the Chariots (1885)
I can’t get everything into 1 post, so there will be a Tissot – II. In the meantime, I leave you with a shot of the 1 watercolour with gouache on paper.
Waiting (late 1800’s)
The young girl’s bored stare, pale skin, under eye circles with oversized bonnet and gloves (highlighting weight loss) suggest tuberculosis.
“Consumption” was coined a term, as it consumed patients, and ate away bodies.
Art Gowns 
You must be logged in to post a comment.