The Tansey Miniatures Foundation

Die Miniatur Über den Künstler

The Tansey Miniatures Foundation

DE
The Miniature About the Artist

Lady with Drawing File in front of Landscape

Elisabeth Terroux

This portrait is among the best works by Elisabeth Terroux, a specialist in enamel painting1. Her works are characterised by great expressiveness and unusual, powerful colouring. The miniature shows a young lady with dark hair in a white chemise dress which is tied by a black cord under her breast, with a golden yellow shawl draped around her shoulders. In the background one can discern park scenery with a mountain or roof on the right. The lady has a metal holder for different drawing leads in her left hand and is holding a drawing file in her right, which suggests that she liked drawing. The sky is beautifully reproduced in the evening glow; everything is bathed in the warm light of the sunset. The lady’s red cheeks and the warm colouring of her breast, her arms, her dress and shawl seem to reflect the evening light. The reproduction of the sitter’s left arm, which perfectly corresponds to the round format of the miniature, is especially striking as it appears to become longer and more slender towards the hand.

J. S. O.

1 In this particular technique, which was mastered only by a few painters, the artist applied a coat of white ground enamel to a moulded copper plate on which the painting was executed with special pigments. The painting was fixed to the painting support by firing in an oven. Cf. B. Pappe, “Kunst und Können in der Miniaturmalerei” (Art and Skill in miniature painting) in: Otten Pappe, Schmieglitz-Otten 2000, pp. 17-27, here p. 18.