The Feathered Turban (Le turban à aigrette)
1901
Medium
etching and drypoint on imitation vellum paper
Dimensions
image: 19.2 × 17.4 cm (7 9/16 × 6 7/8 in.) plate: 23.5 × 18 cm (9 1/4 × 7 1/16 in.) sheet: 31.2 × 22.6 cm (12 5/16 × 8 7/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Bell
Accession Number
1997.91.4
Art Historical Context
Albert Besnard's *The Feathered Tur (Le turban à aigrette)*, created in 1901, the elegant allure of Belle Époque fashion through the delicate medium of etching and drypoint imitation vellum paper. intimate print, measuring just 19.2 × 17.4 cm at its image size, showcases Besnard's as a French artist (1849–1934), who bridged academic traditions with modern sensibilities. Renowned for his luminous portraits and murals, Besnard often depicted sophisticated women, evoking a sense of refined exoticism in this work's titular feathered headdress—a nod to the opulent millinery trends of early 20th-cen...
About the Artist
Albert Besnard
Paul-Albert Besnard, known as Albert Besnard, was born on June 2, 1849, in Paris to an artistic family: his father, Louis Adolphe Ferdinand Besnard, was a history painter and pupil of Ingres, while his mother, Marie Louise Pauline Vaillant, was a noted miniaturist trained under Lizinska de Mirbel. Precociously talented, he began his training under Jean-François Brémond before entering the École de...