Artwork
Marie Taglioni in La Sylphide (Souvenir d'adieu, No. 2)
Marie Taglioni in La Sylphide (Souvenir d'adieu, No. 2) is a print by the Romanticist artist Alfred Edward Chalon. It dates from 8 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This print depicts the celebrated 19th‑century dancer Marie Taglioni in the role of the sylph from the Romantic ballet La Sylphide.
About this work
Overview
This print depicts the celebrated 19th‑century dancer Marie Taglioni in the role of the sylph from the Romantic ballet La Sylphide. Rendered in a delicate monochrome, the image captures the ethereal figure poised before a farmhouse window, her elongated arms extending outward as she hovers on the tips of her toes.
Subject & Meaning
The composition illustrates the sylph’s fleeting appearance to James, the young Scottish farmer who has become enchanted by her. The figure’s airy posture and translucent quality convey the Romantic fascination with supernatural beings, emphasizing the tension between earthly desire and unattainable, otherworldly beauty.
Technique & Style
La Sylphide was the first ballet to employ pointe work as an expressive device rather than a mere stunt. Filippo Taglioni designed the choreography to highlight his daughter’s slender physique and unusually long arms, incorporating forward‑leaning poses and crossed arms that masked perceived physical flaws while reinforcing the ethereal aesthetic of the Romantic era.
History & Provenance
Created shortly after the ballet’s 1832 debut, the print was produced as a souvenir of Taglioni’s iconic performance. It entered the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, where it remains part of the institution’s holdings of 19th‑century dance ephemera, documenting both the dancer’s fame and the early development of ballet’s visual culture.
Artist & collection
Artist
Alfred Edward Chalon was a Swiss-born British portraitist. He lived in London where he was noticed by Queen Victoria.
