Signed l.d.: I Mikulska | 1876
On the reverse, on the upper strip of the loom, a sticker (in ink): 4976 | [...] LENOIR | [...].
The painting is probably identical to the work presented by the artist at the Paris Salon in May 1876. On display under item 1471 was Portrait of Madame E. G. de R.... , which was described as follows in "Bibliotheca Warszawska", a magazine devoted to sciences, arts and industry: [...] Miss Izydora Mikulska, exhibited a portrait of a young woman. It is with real pleasure that we have been following the progress of our compatriot in art for two years. The portrait made by her stands out among the others for its beautiful complexion and radiance of life, gushing from the large dark blue eyes; fawn hair slightly swirls over the forehead. The black silk gown reflects exquisitely, against the warm brown background of the painting; it is heightened by the effulgence of the white lace falling on the delicate hand, carefully modeled.
Bibliography:
- Explication des ouvrages de peinture, sculpture, architecture, gravure et lithographie des artistes vivants, exposés au Palais des Champs-Élysées le 1er mai 1876, Paris 1876, p. 183, no. 1471[Portrait de Mme E.G. de R... ];
- Biblioteka Warszawska Pismo poświęcone naukom, sztuki i przemysłowi, Warsaw 1876, vol. 3, p. 146.
Isidorine-Emilie Mikulska (Paris 1845 - after 1900) was a French painter of Polish descent. Her father, November insurgent Józef Gustaw Mikulski, emigrated to France in 1831. He was one of the co-founders of the Lithuanian and Russian Lands Society and a member of the Polish National Committee and the Polish Circle in Paris.
In the catalogs of the Paris Salons and in the Polish and French press, Mikulska is listed as a pupil of Leon Cogniet and Charles Chaplin. She exhibited at the Salons between 1868 and 1878, receiving mostly laudatory reviews. She showed great talent, and her works were characterized by remarkable realism. From at least 1875, she ran her own painting school at 64 rue de Clichy - where she lived, at least since 1869. Her students exhibited works at the Salon (watercolors, oil paintings and paintings on faience). Her mother also exhibited her works at the Salon several times. She had been a member of L'Association des Artistes since 1870. In 1900, a few months after her mother's death, she married Louis-Paul Cressin, three years younger, in Paris. One of the witnesses was François Sapieha, a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor and a factory owner. In addition to salons, early in her career she exhibited paintings in group exhibitions in cities such as Havre (1870), Nevers (1873) and Rouen (1874). She also exhibited her works at the Exhibition of Anthropological Sciences, organized mainly by Poles as part of the World Exhibition in Paris, and at an exhibition of drawings and prints at the Durand-Ruel gallery in 1876. She also took part in charity work, donating her paintings to auctions. She was also associated with the Polish school in Batignolles.
