Guirand de Scevola Lucien-Victor

Her delicately modelled face is symmetrically framed by short, wavy hair, its dark colour contrasting magnificently with the paleness of her skin. Her lips, an intense red, contrast sharply with the softness of her face, offering a visual radiance that the eye cannot ignore. She wears a dress with a high collar, sober but elegant, giving her a majestic, almost regal look.

A necklace of dark pearls adorns her neck, the pendant of which, adorned with a deep red gemstone, catches the light in an astonishing way, accentuating the gravity and beauty of the whole. This refined, rare and precious detail attests to the artist's taste for symbolic objects, adding an extra dimension to this portrait.

The deep blue background highlights the central figure while enveloping the subject in an atmosphere of calm and mystery. This blue, widely used by artists of the period to signify both depth and introspection, lends a dreamlike quality to the whole, a world where reality seems to eclipse itself.

This portrait is painted in oil, which is rare for an artist generally renowned for his pastels. However, this oil painting has the same lightness and fluidity that characterise his pastel work, giving the work an almost vaporous texture. The use of oil paint allows Guirand de Scévola to play more with light, while retaining the ethereal softness of pastel, a technical marriage that makes this piece even more unique and precious.

This work is a perfect example of Guirand de Scévola's talent for capturing the essence of an era, while infusing his portraits with an almost timeless beauty. A true treasure for connoisseurs, both seductive and deeply evocative, this portrait fits perfectly into the context of the great Symbolist works, and it is rare to find such a painting, both rich in symbolism and elegance.