Still Life with Two Chrysanthemums, undated
Oil on canvas, 35 x 58 cm
Musée de Grenoble, Grenoble
As a doctoral student in art history, I am examining the depiction of floral arrangements in France and Great Britain between 1890 and 1930. In this context, I am exploring the stylistic evolution of the floral still life—a genre that has been marginalized within the academic tradition and socially gendered as feminine, particularly due to the numerous depictions linking flowers and femininity. My research also focuses on the interactions and tensions surrounding the motif of the flower bouquet outside the artistic sphere, in relation to the visual and media culture of the time and developments in horticulture.
With the aim of conducting research on the subject of flower bouquets—a subject that has been largely undervalued in art history despite the sheer volume of works produced at the turn of the century—I am seeking any private archives (letters, manuscripts, photographs, etc.) that attest to artistic practice or an interest in nature, as well as any works held in private collections by the female artists I have included in my corpus: Louise Abbéma, Georgette Agutte, Mathilde Delattre, Eugénie Faux-Froidure, Louise Galtier-Boissière, Marie Laurencin, Juliette Roche, and Suzanne Valadon.
I would be very grateful to anyone who could point me toward private documents—whether visual or textual—related to these artists.
Thank you for your consideration of my research. I assure you in advance that I will treat any information brought to my attention with the utmost discretion.
Please feel free to contact me by email at the following address: alienor.bautruvalois@univ-grenoble-alpes.fr
Aliénor Bautru-Valois
Ph.D. candidate in art history at the University of Grenoble Alpes (LARHRA-UMR 5190)
Thesis supported by the ANR GATES program as part of the project “FLOWER - Floral Legacies: Observing Women’s Eco-artistic Representations” (2025–2028).