French painter, Adrienne Grandpierre-Deverzy (1798 – 1869) stands out for her historical paintings and her portraits. She exhibited at the Salon for more than 30 years.
Exhibition at the Salon
Born in 1798 in Tonnerre (in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in France), Adrienne Marie Louise Grandpierre-Deverzy was introduced to art by the neoclassical painter Abel de Pujol. Author of historical, mythological and biblical paintings, the painter opened his studio to female students at a time when the Academy of Fine Arts and the National School of Fine Arts in Paris scrupulously closed their doors to them.
In 1822, Adrienne drew the painting L’Atelier d’Abel de Pujol from it. , showing the artist advising his students (a painting now in the Marmottan-Monet museum in Paris). The same year, the work was selected to be exhibited at the Salon des artistes français, more commonly known as the Salon. Organized more or less annually since 1673, it presents works selected by the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture, by the Academy of Fine Arts and then by the Society of French Artists. If women are admitted, they remain a minority; that year, out of 475 exhibitors, only 67 were women, or about 14%.
A recognized artist
A prolific and recognized artist, Adrienne Grandpierre-Deverzy continued to exhibit at the Salon from 1822 to 1855. She painted several times representations of Abel de Pujol's studio, in which she became an assistant teacher, and stood out for her paintings. stories and portraits. One of his paintings from the studio of Abel de Pujol was exhibited at the Universal Exhibition of 1855 in Paris.
In 1856, at the age of 58, Adrienne married Abel de Pujol, a widower and thirteen years her senior. Thereafter, she continued to exhibit at the Salon under the name of Adrienne de Pujol. One of his works, “Monaldeschi implores the grace of Christine of Sweden at Fontainebleau”, showing an Italian aristocrat begging – in vain – the queen to spare his life, is on display at the Château de Fontainebleau.
Adrienne Grandpierre-Deverz died in Paris in March 1869. Despite her talent recognized by her time and her peers, she sank into oblivion before being rediscovered with the historic exhibition Women Artists, 1550–1950, organized in four cities in the United States by Ann Sutherland Harris and Linda Nochlin and featuring 83 artists from 12 countries. Adrienne's work, presenting Abel de Pujol's studio, is used on the cover of the exhibition catalogue.
