By Lucien Métivet
Located in Chicago, IL
Eugénie Buffet was a French singer, actress, and pioneer of the chanson réaliste (realist song) genre, which portrayed the day to day lives of the poor and working-class in Paris. Métivet’s Ambassadeurs poster depicts Buffet as a prostitute working on the cold, windy streets of Paris; Buffet describes following working women to effectively reflect their demeanor in her roles, “Huddled in the shadow of dark alleys, I espied their beckoning calls to passersby, followed them from afar, scraping invisibly along the walls, listened to their words in the doorways of seedy hotels; sometimes, even, made up and dressed like them, I would slip among them, sitting at tables in their dives, and join in the conversation” (Buffet, 1930 via Conway, 2004). Her name, much like that of fellow performer Aristide Bruant, was further solidified in history by their likenesses in iconic and historically important artworks by Métivet’s and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.
“Métivet’s talent is seen at its best in the Eugénie Buffet advertisements, two studies worthy a place amongst the best posters which have come from the hands of contemporary French artists” (Hiatt, 1896).
This artwork is presented in an archival rag mat.
Notable museum collections containing this work include: Yale University Art Gallery (large-format version) (1969.3.3)
Notable museum collections featuring works by Lucien...
Category
1890s Lucien Métivet Art