The lives of Renoir's subjects in the iconic 'Pink and Blue' painting took a tragic turn, revealing a hidden history of art, war, and betrayal. This captivating tale, uncovered by Catherine Ostler in her book 'The Renoir Girls', sheds light on the fates of the two young girls, Elisabeth and Alice, who were immortalized in Renoir's masterpiece. What makes this story particularly fascinating is the contrast between the idyllic scene captured by Renoir and the tumultuous lives the girls lived, marked by societal changes, political unrest, and personal tragedies. In my opinion, this narrative serves as a powerful reminder of the fragility of life and the impact of historical events on individual lives.
The painting, created in 1881, portrays the two young girls, Elisabeth and Alice, in a moment of innocence and joy. They are dressed in frilly white dresses, with Elisabeth wearing a blue sash and Alice a pink one, their hair tied back by silk ribbons. Their eyes, filled with gentle trust, look out at the world, unaware of the challenges that lie ahead. What many people don't realize is that this seemingly idyllic scene is a snapshot of a time when Paris was at the height of its Belle Époque, a period of scientific and technological progress, and a remarkable flourishing of the arts.
The girls' mother, Louise Cahen d'Anvers, was a well-known society beauty who hosted a salon for artists and writers. She was also involved in a long affair with art patron Charles Ephrussi, believed to be an inspiration for Charles Swann in Marcel Proust's 'In Search of Lost Time'. This affair played a significant role in the girls' lives, as Ephrussi persuaded Louise to have their portraits done by Renoir, then an up-and-coming Impressionist painter. The resulting painting, 'Pink and Blue', is a testament to the beauty and charm of the Belle Époque.
However, the story takes a darker turn as we delve into the lives of Elisabeth and Alice. The painting's creation was not without controversy, as the girls' father, Louis Cahen d'Anvers, was slow to pay Renoir, possibly due to his dissatisfaction with the image of Alice. This mystery sets the stage for a narrative filled with gossip, supposition, and family secrets. From my perspective, the tension between the painting's idyllic beauty and the girls' turbulent lives adds a layer of complexity and intrigue to the story.
Ostler's book reveals the societal and political backdrop against which the girls' lives unfolded. The Third Republic, established after France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, was struggling for legitimacy, and this instability fueled xenophobia and antisemitism. Jews, such as the Cahen d'Anvers family, had been granted full rights as citizens after the French Revolution, but the Dreyfus affair of 1894 divided the nation into two fiercely opposed camps, the Dreyfusards and the anti-Dreyfusards. This period of political turmoil had a profound impact on the lives of the girls and their family.
Elisabeth Cahen d'Anvers, the elder girl, chose to become a Catholic in 1895, possibly due to the tender care she received from nuns after a riding accident. She later married Comte Jean de Forceville, a Catholic aristocrat from Picardy. Alice, on the other hand, married Charles Townshend, a rising star in the British Army, in a Church of England ceremony. Townshend's career was cut short in 1916 when he oversaw the humiliating surrender of the British garrison at Kut, south of Bagdad, to the Ottoman Army.
The story takes a tragic turn during World War II. Alice, then 64, found herself cowering in a ditch with her two children and her lady's maid as the Luftwaffe flew overhead. She managed to escape to Bordeaux and board an overcrowded freighter bound for Britain. Meanwhile, Elisabeth, who had divorced two husbands and lost another love in World War I, retreated from Paris after the German occupation. She was arrested and sent to Drancy, a collection point for Jews outside Paris, and was eventually transported to her death in Auschwitz.
The painting 'Pink and Blue' itself has a fascinating journey. In summer 1939, it was included in a collection of French art organized by a Louvre curator and sent on a tour of the Americas. At the tour's end, the painting was stored in a fine-art facility in New York until it was sold to the Brazilian plutocrat Francisco de Assis Chateaubriand Bandeira de Melo in 1951. Today, the portrait hangs in the São Paulo Museum of Art, serving as a poignant relic of the Belle Époque.
In conclusion, the lives of Elisabeth and Alice, as revealed in Ostler's book, offer a stark contrast to the idyllic scene captured by Renoir. Their stories are a testament to the fragility of life and the impact of historical events on individual lives. This hidden history serves as a powerful reminder of the complexities and challenges faced by those living during a time of great change and turmoil. From my perspective, it is a story that deserves to be told and remembered, as it sheds light on a forgotten chapter of history and the lives of two young girls who were forever changed by the events of their time.
