Mr. Leroux in the Role of Alceste in Le Misanthrope
Medium
albumen print from wax paper negative
Dimensions
image: 14.4 × 12.1 cm · matted: 45.7 × 35.6 cm
Classification
Photograph
Department
Photography
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
John L. Severance Fund
Accession Number
1997.42
Tags
male
About this artwork
Leroux was a star of the Comédie-Française, the most important theater in France. He is seen here around age 35 as the lead in Molière’s play The Misanthrope, a classic 17th-century play that satirizes the character flaws of the French aristocracy. As in the portrait of Bernhardt nearby, subtle aspects of pose, expression, and costuming create the character. Vallou de Villeneuve began his career as a painter and lithographer, then established himself in photography specializing in nude studies f...