Posts Tagged: Robert de Montesquiou
Merely real
Count Robert de Montesquiou, poet, dandy, aesthete, on the 100th anniversary of his death
Merely real
Count Robert de Montesquiou, poet, dandy, aesthete, on the 100th anniversary of his death
Royally buzzed
“Even the mummies stand up and walk when they drink Vin Mariani!”
The ghosts of Versailles
Did two English spinsters slip through a wormhole in the early 20th century and end up in pre-revolutionary France? SPOILER ALERT: No.
The ghosts of Versailles
Did two English spinsters slip through a wormhole in the early 20th century and end up in pre-revolutionary France? SPOILER ALERT: No.
The poet of the bats
“Did he really invent an orchestra of perfumes, an orchestra of liqueurs, on which he could play the subtlest harmonies of the senses?”
The poet of the bats
“Did he really invent an orchestra of perfumes, an orchestra of liqueurs, on which he could play the subtlest harmonies of the senses?”
Circles: Ludwig II/Sissi
The Austrian empress and the Bavarian king were cousins and might have been in-laws as well if Ludwig hadn’t broken off his engagement with Sissi’s sister Sophie.
Circles: Ludwig II/Sissi
The Austrian empress and the Bavarian king were cousins and might have been in-laws as well if Ludwig hadn’t broken off his engagement with Sissi’s sister Sophie.
A Lorrain special, part 2
It’s impossible to understand Jean Lorrain without acknowledging his self-loathing. A masochistic streak led him to provoke the ire of those he admired as much as the objects of his disdain.
A Lorrain special, part 2
It’s impossible to understand Jean Lorrain without acknowledging his self-loathing. A masochistic streak led him to provoke the ire of those he admired as much as the objects of his disdain.
Places: Palais Rose, Le Vésinet
Montesquiou first laid eyes on the house in 1908 and announced that he would die if it were not his the following day. Well, it took two days to secure a sale agreement but the silly old drama queen somehow managed to cling to life.
Places: Palais Rose, Le Vésinet
Montesquiou first laid eyes on the house in 1908 and announced that he would die if it were not his the following day. Well, it took two days to secure a sale agreement but the silly old drama queen somehow managed to cling to life.
Autour de Jacques
The catalogue offers much to gladden the heart of anyone interested in queer/Decadent undercurrents of the Belle Époque.
Autour de Jacques
The catalogue offers much to gladden the heart of anyone interested in queer/Decadent undercurrents of the Belle Époque.
Stranger than fiction
I’m going to look more closely at the phenomenon of real-life individuals appearing in fiction in a feature called ‘Doubles’, holding up the original and the model, looking at the process by which flesh-and-blood becomes embedded in fiction.
Stranger than fiction
I’m going to look more closely at the phenomenon of real-life individuals appearing in fiction in a feature called ‘Doubles’, holding up the original and the model, looking at the process by which flesh-and-blood becomes embedded in fiction.
The hands of Robert de Montesquiou
Montesquiou’s hands — slim, pale, elegant, well-dressed — were the count himself in manicured microcosm. Portraitists, photographers and caricaturists were all drawn to the expressive richness of the long, tapering fingers, whether adorned with rings, gloves, or nothing but perfumed air.
The hands of Robert de Montesquiou
Montesquiou’s hands — slim, pale, elegant, well-dressed — were the count himself in manicured microcosm. Portraitists, photographers and caricaturists were all drawn to the expressive richness of the long, tapering fingers, whether adorned with rings, gloves, or nothing but perfumed air.
Sodom’s ambassador to Paris
Jean Lorrain was a master of fin-de-siècle snark, using both novels and articles to take down many of the public figures of his day. He had – to quote Ann Widdecombe (four words I never thought I’d type) – “something of the night” about him.
Sodom’s ambassador to Paris
Jean Lorrain was a master of fin-de-siècle snark, using both novels and articles to take down many of the public figures of his day. He had – to quote Ann Widdecombe (four words I never thought I’d type) – “something of the night” about him.
Rex Luna
Both Ludwig and Sissi took the abstractions of Romanticism and not only made them reality but practised them at the level of an extreme sport. In so doing they inspired the Decadent writers who furthered the Romantics’ cult of self.
Rex Luna
Both Ludwig and Sissi took the abstractions of Romanticism and not only made them reality but practised them at the level of an extreme sport. In so doing they inspired the Decadent writers who furthered the Romantics’ cult of self.
La Marquise de Sade
Mathilde de Morny’s scandalous life and aristocratic background proved an irresistible combination for contemporary writers; she appears thinly disguised in numerous works of fiction, though often the portrayal owed more to the author’s projection than the marquise herself.
La Marquise de Sade
Mathilde de Morny’s scandalous life and aristocratic background proved an irresistible combination for contemporary writers; she appears thinly disguised in numerous works of fiction, though often the portrayal owed more to the author’s projection than the marquise herself.
Paul and Paulette
Proust was fascinated by the then-novel all white interior of the Helleus’ home, and it was there that the young Paulette met the author; other visitors included the artist Boldini, Robert de Montesquiou and aristocratic bon vivant Boni de Castellane.
Paul and Paulette
Proust was fascinated by the then-novel all white interior of the Helleus’ home, and it was there that the young Paulette met the author; other visitors included the artist Boldini, Robert de Montesquiou and aristocratic bon vivant Boni de Castellane.
Verlaine’s funeral
The public funeral drew around 5000 mourners on a cold, bright day and marked the exact point at which the hitherto disreputable Paul Verlaine was rehabilitated by the bourgeoisie.
Verlaine’s funeral
The public funeral drew around 5000 mourners on a cold, bright day and marked the exact point at which the hitherto disreputable Paul Verlaine was rehabilitated by the bourgeoisie.
Dress-down Friday: Robert de Montesquiou
Whistler and Boldini were each inspired by their sitter’s magnetic self-possession to produce timeless portraits, and he famously served as the model for two literary barons: Charlus in Proust’s slim page-turner À la recherche du temps perdu and des Esseintes in J.K. Huysmans’ À rebours.
Dress-down Friday: Robert de Montesquiou
Whistler and Boldini were each inspired by their sitter’s magnetic self-possession to produce timeless portraits, and he famously served as the model for two literary barons: Charlus in Proust’s slim page-turner À la recherche du temps perdu and des Esseintes in J.K. Huysmans’ À rebours.
The countess in the afterlife
Today, curating one’s own image is a pursuit available to anyone with a Facebook account and a digital camera; this phenomenon arguably began with the Countess de Castiglione in Second Empire France.
The countess in the afterlife
Today, curating one’s own image is a pursuit available to anyone with a Facebook account and a digital camera; this phenomenon arguably began with the Countess de Castiglione in Second Empire France.
Strange Flowers 