112/ A voyage to Cythera (4): with illustrators and caricaturists

Tweet

Within the foregoing submit 111/ of this sequence it was demonstrated  that the phrase Cythère was nonetheless very a lot unfold in publications all through the French nineteenth and twentieth centuries (1, Figs.3 & 4). Subsequently, Cythère grew to become inspiration for illustrators and caricaturists within the flourishing enterprise of all sorts of journals (2), reporting in regards to the leisure market, social tradition and politics. The pictures, collected chronologically from 1863 to 1962 in a Google Album, together with all metadata (Fig.1), and in a Listing (Desk 1), are proof of the persistent survival of legendary Cythère in French cultural life.

Fig.1 Google Album – Hundred years ‘Cythera: illustrations and caricatures’

Desk 1 : Listing of collected illustrations and caricatures

The Listing reveals that 80{2e94c94fd75a8decb1522fc5f01170a68dab91ab50eef60eff7c81abe3640e6e} of the collected pictures had been revealed in – principally – weekly journals, highlighted in crimson (2). Extra feedback in regards to the historic background of chosen pictures are beneficial to know their which means or significance.

·       Ref 1‘Les Cythères Parisiennes’ is among the many profitable e book illustrations by Félicien ROPS (1833-1898). The e book of 1864 by Delvau tells about 64 ballrooms (‘Bals de Paris’) and cabarets, with Cythéréennes  – girls predisposed to like and pleasure. A number of preparatory sketches of dancing individuals are recognized (3).

Fig.2

Paris-Cythèregrew to become an idea, largely disseminated within the press and in books (Figs.2 & 3).

Fig.2 Etude de Moeurs Parisiennes  – On line casino de Paris – Moulin-Rouge – Folies-Bergère – Bullier – Elysée de Montmartre 

par Maurice Delsol (Paris, 1893) (1)

Fig. 3 Prevalence of ‘Paris-Cythère’ in books in keeping with Google Ngram and Gallicagram

·       Ref 2 Le Charivari, the well-known satirical journal, animated greater than hundred years from 1832-to 1937, revealed these two photos entitled La Bourse de Cythère’ in 1868 with a mess of feminine figures and subscripts about stock-market actions (Actionnaires/ Courtiers marrons / La hausse / La baisse / and so on.). Created in 1724, the Bourse de Paris was a spot the place the presence of girls was prohibited till hundred years later in 1967 !

·       Ref 5…Ref 11 These seven colored drawings by Félicien ROPS, all with topic Cythère, created in 1878-81, are a part of a sequence of ten (dizain), commissioned along with ‘cent croquis pour réjouir les honnêtes gens’ by the bibliophile Jules Noilly (4). They had been dispersed ten years later when Noilly died.

·     Ref 12 The relation ‘Cythère / army’ is an everyday subject among the many caricatures: see Refs 29, 33, 41, 42.

·       Ref 14 This cowl image 1883 of La Caricature, a brief dwelling weekly journal (1881-1904), refers to a replica of WATTEAU’s well-known portray, however known as right here ‘Retour de Cythère’ and located within the attic (sic) of the Musée du Louvre. The robust satirical subscript is a sign that this discovery was cripplingly mentioned within the press, however no additional hint may very well be discovered.

·       Ref 21 This illustration by Félicien ROPS of 1896, with title ‘Les droits des femmes– KYPRIZ Cour et tribunal de Cythère‘, is certainly one of eight in a luxurious distinctive version of a e book devoted to girls, love and sweetness. 

Fig.4

This picture (Fig.4) shouldn’t be interpreted as a caricature, however moderately as a manifestation of ROPS’ imaginative and prescient: courtroom and tribunal needs to be held beneath the aegis of Aphrodite (Kypris). A letter to Louise DANSE, a younger artist he admired, explains his judgement in regards to the male gender … (5, p.87-88).

·       

•  Ref 23 ‘L’embarquement des comédiens pour Cythère’ in Le rire, N°196 4°année 6 Août 1898 , is outstanding as a result of the subscripts designate by their correct title greater than 15 actors, music composers, poets, artists, all depicted in a most caricatural manner . ‘Le Rire : journal humoristique’ revealed from 1894 till 1971 was probably the most profitable of all of the “Journaux Humoristiques”, with glorious drawings by distinguished artists. ‘Le Rire’ was significantly informative about music halls and café-cabarets. In an inventory of  28 Théâtres et Live shows in Paris,‘Le Rire’, 1 Decembre 1894: La Cigale, a café-cabaret just lately based, proposes in Decembre 1894 ‘Le Royaume de Cythère’. No additional particulars nor any iconography may very well be discovered … title and its topic possibly impressed by ‘ La Carte du Royaume d’amour en l’isle de Cythère’ attributed to Tristan l’Hermite (1659)?  There’s additionally the poem of Jean-Baptiste Joseph Willart de Grécourt (1683-1743) « L’île de Cythère: (…) Level de nouveaux impôts – Dans l’île de Cythère (…) Level de nouvel édit – Dans l’île de Cythère ; La seule loi qu’on swimsuit – N’ordonne que de faire – L’amour La nuit et le jour « (6).

• Ref 26 The cabaret ‘Moulin Rouge’ organised a ‘Grand défilé allégorique En route pour Cythère’ in October 1900.
  

  Fig.5 (6)

A contest with the opposite well-known cabaret ‘Folies-Bergère’? The latter had an incredible success with Cythère, le délicieux ballet…  since April 1900 (Fig.5)

On 28 July 1900, Le Rire experiences in regards to thea centesimal efficiency of « le plus ravissant » ballet ‘Cythère’ at Folies-Bergère .

·      Ref 29 King Edouard VII, aka Soiled Bertie, had a particular attachment to the town of Paris, and its pleasures…therefore, his comment throughout his official go to in 1903, to the President of France who forgot to parade additionally the bataillon de Cythère…

Fig.6 Occurence of ‘bataillon de Cythère’ in books in keeping with Google Ngram and Gallicagram

Fig. 7 (7)

The time period was for instance the title of a small nameless e book ‘Le Bataillon de Cythère’ in 1902 (Fig.7) and a music composition ‘Le Bataillon de Cythère’ by F.-D. Marchetti, carried out by the Orchestre Royal Napolitain within the Avant-Lobby of the Théâtre de l’Opéra in 1903 (8). The infamous courtisane Liane de Pougy, was « une des belles minettes les plus en prepare du joyeux bataillon de Cythère » (9, §14).

NOTES

1. Submit of 23 Octobre 2022 ‘111/ A voyage to Cythera (3): amongst publishers and their pretend imprints ‘

2. GALLICA has digitized a whole lot of Journals of all type. All these categorized as ‘Les hebdomadaires’ and ‘Presse satirique’ had been explored, however in lots of circumstances not all points can be found. Therefore, the gathering offered on this submit is way from exhaustive.

3. J.-F. Bory ‘Félicien Rops – l’oeuvre graphique complet’Arthur Hubschmid, Paris 1977.

4. See a prolonged description about this fee in ‘Les Cent légers croquis sans prétention’, exhibition 12/09 – 11/10/1998, Musée Félicien Rops, Namur

5. Félicien Rops, Mémoires pour nuire à l’histoire artistique de mon temps. Choix de textes et lecture d’Hélène Védrine. Bruxelles, Labor, coll. Espace Nord n°146, 1998, 377 p., in poor health.

See additionally: Lettre de Félicien Rops à Louise Danse, s.l.n.d., or  « Lettres à une femme », in : La Vogue, nouvelle série , t. II, 1899, p. 10-11 

6. See B Buffard-Moret ‘QUAND LA POÉSIE PART POUR CYTHÈRE – De la fascination du lieu au pouvoir des mots’ p.40-58 in ‘L’île: pictures, imaginaire et fiction’  Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Letras (2014).

7. ‘Le bataillon de Cythère’,edited by P. Fort (Paris, 1902, 62 pp.) with cowl drawing by Granvelle (?).

8. Théâtre de l’Opéra : bals masqués, carnaval 1903 monographie imprimée  [8] p.

9. Nathalie Coutelet  Les Folies-Bergère : une pornographie “select” Romantisme 2014/1 (n° 163), 111-124. 

This sequence:  June 10, 2022

109/ A voyage toCythera (1): amongst poets, painters and musicians

August 30, 2022 

110/ A voyage to Cythera (2) amid 30 French comedies of the 18th century

October 23,2022 

111/ A voyage to Cythera (3): amongst publishers and their pretend imprints

You may additionally like my different 111 posts since 2011: 

use ‘search’ or strive the dynamic view –

  choose certainly one of a number of choices of studying kinds:

* Traditional * Flipcard * Journal * Mosaic

Instance of a ‘Flipcard’ dynamic view