Attributed to Charles Louis Müller

Attributed to CHARLES LOUIS MÜLLER (Paris, 1815-1892).
"Allegory of vanity".
Oil on canvas.
Presents restorations.
Measurements. 116 x 90 cm; 123 x 95 cm (frame).

In this oil on canvas the author portrays a young woman who looks directly at the viewer with a flirtatious gesture. A boy plays on her shoulder and amuses himself by covering his blond hair with the young girl's jet black, while also amusing himself with her pearl necklace. In the background, behind the parapet of a balcony, hollyhocks. The scene reveals a brushstroke, with which the author has composed the scene based on touches and broad brushstrokes that shape the sinuous forms of the woman. The light, totally directed, is centered on a central focus. It is a portrait of great instantaneity, similar to a fleeting vision captured from life, rather than a portrait calmly elaborated in a studio.

Charles Müller was a renowned French portraitist and decorator of the 19th century, widely known by his artistic pseudonym Müller de Paris. Born in an era of great artistic effervescence, he developed an outstanding career that positioned him as an influential figure within the artistic panorama of his time. He studied at the prestigious Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he perfected his technique and deepened his knowledge of the aesthetic currents that marked his work.

From 1834, Müller began to exhibit regularly at the famous Salon de France, one of the main showcases of academic art in the country. He participated in these exhibitions for almost six decades, without interrupting this tradition until 1892, which evidences both the constancy of his production and the recognition he received from the public and critics.

Later in his career, Müller collaborated with the architect Hector Lefebvre on an ambitious project: the transformation and embellishment of the Louvre Palace during the reign of Napoleon III. In this context, he contributed his talent to the creation of the "new Louvre", actively participating in important decorative commissions. Among his most outstanding works from this period are the frescoes executed for the Salle d'État and the Galerie d'Apollon, as well as the ornamentation of the ceiling of the Salon Denon, spaces that still reflect the mastery of his art today.

Thanks to his refined style and mastery of mural technique, Charles Müller left a lasting mark on some of the most emblematic spaces of the French cultural heritage.