Artwork
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph
Guy Little Theatrical Photograph is a photographic photography by the Impressionist artist Willem van de Velde the elder. It is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Photograph of Mlle Fargueul.
About this work
Vandeville took this photograph in 1859. It shows Mlle Fargueul, an actress of the time. The photo is part of a trend where performers posed for small portraits sold to fans.
The image fits in a world where photography was new and exciting. Actresses like Mlle Fargueul often posed for these portraits, printed on stiff cards meant for collecting.
Check out the Victoria and Albert Museum for more.
Overview
The photograph reflects the era’s practice of collecting actor portraits alongside scenic views and artworks before larger "cabinet cards" gained popularity.
The photograph depicts Mlle Fargueul, produced by Vandeville in 1859 as part of the Victorian trend of theatrical portraiture. It is an albumen print from a glass negative, mounted on card with the photographer’s imprint, typical of the "cartes de visite" format patented in 1854 and widely circulated in the 1860s. This image was later removed from its backing and included in a collection assembled by Guy Tristram Little, whose donated materials formed part of the Theatre Collections at the V&A. The photograph reflects the era’s practice of collecting actor portraits alongside scenic views and artworks before larger "cabinet cards" gained popularity.
Artist & collection
Artist
Willem van de Velde the Elder (1610/11 – 13 December 1693) was a Dutch Golden Age seascape painter, who produced many precise drawings of ships and ink paintings of fleets, but later learned to use oil paints like his son.
"Council of War aboard 'The Seven Provinces' the Flagship of Michiel Adriaensz de Ruyter, 10 June 1666, preceding the Four Days' Battle
The Batlle of Livorno, 14 March 1653: episode from the First Anglo-Dutch War (1652-54)
Episode from the Four Day Battle at Sea, 11-14 June 1666, in the second Anglo-Dutch War (1665-67)
Seascape with Dutch men-of-war
Episode from the Battle of the Sound between the Dutch and Swedish fleets, 8 November 1658
The unsuccessful English attack against the returning Dutch fleet in the harbor of Bergen, Norway, 12 August 1665: episode from the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665-67)
The Battle of Terheide
The Battle of the Downs
