Madeleine Lerolle and Her Daughter Yvonne (c. 1879–80): Art, History and Details

Madeleine Lerolle and Her Daughter Yvonne (c. 1879–80) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Albert Besnard (French, 1849–1934).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Albert Besnard was a good friend of fellow artist Henri Lerolle, whose wife Madeleine and daughter Yvonne are the subjects of this double portrait set in a studio. The artist’s profession is referenced in the large portfolios of drawings at lower right, and the easel at upper left, which displays a canvas tipped forward at an unusual angle. The canvas has been strapped to the easel in this position so the artist can more easily paint while seated.

Object facts

• Title: Madeleine Lerolle and Her Daughter Yvonne
• Date: c. 1879–80
• Creator attribution: Albert Besnard (French, 1849–1934)
• Culture: France, 19th century
• Type: Painting
• Technique: oil on fabric
• Dimensions: Framed: 191.5 x 142.2 x 9.5 cm (75 3/8 x 56 x 3 3/4 in.); Unframed: 165 x 115.5 cm (64 15/16 x 45 1/2 in.)
• Collection: Mod Euro - Painting 1800-1960
• Department: Modern European Painting and Sculpture
• Accession number: 1977.120

Collection credit

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Noah L. Butkin

Further reading listed by the museum

• Weisberg, Gabriel P. “Madame Henry Lerolle and Daughter Yvonne.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 64, no. 10 (December 1977): 326–343.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
• Broun, Francis J. P. The Seven Ages of Man: Inaugural Exhibition, May 3-June 15, 1980. London, England: London Regional Art Gallery, 1980.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.