Gabriel Hervé

GABRIEL HERVÉ (France, 1868-?).
"Portrait de la Très-Belle, grand amour du roi Leopold II".
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower left corner.
Measurements: 74 x 58 cm; 134 x 107 cm (frame).

This oval portrait of the beautiful mistress of King Leopold II offers us an intimate and bucolic vision of Blanche Delacroix, the "Très-Belle". Hervé's choice of pastel tones enhances the delicacy of the features, enveloped by cottony orange hair, the same shade as the silky fur of the small dog she lovingly holds. The pedigree dog, probably a Pomeranian, conveys the idea of fidelity and aristocratic lineage. Blanche appears in a field, a natural setting that evokes innocence and tranquility, far from the pomp and intrigues of the court. The soft, velvety colors accentuate the fluidity of her dress, a white cotton gown, appropriate for a country setting.

Blanche Delacroix, Baroness de Vaughan (born Caroline Lacroix in Bucharest in 1883 and died in Nice in 1948), was the last and most notorious mistress of King Leopold II of Belgium. Their relationship, which lasted from 1900 until the monarch's death in 1909, was a public scandal due to the great age difference between them (she was 17 when they met and he was over 60), her humble origins and the open nature of their relationship while the king was still officially married to Queen Marie Henrietta. Leopold II was deeply in love with Blanche, with whom he had two illegitimate children: Lucien Philippe Marie Antoine (born in 1906) and Philippe Henri Marie François (born in 1907). Shortly before his death, and in an attempt to legitimize his children and ensure Blanche's future, the king married her in a private religious ceremony, although this marriage had no legal validity in Belgium.

Gabriel Hervé was a genre painter and specialized in portraiture. From 1903, he exhibited his work at the Salon des Artistes Français in Paris. His works are part of collections in London, Paris and the United States.