THE MERCHANT OF THE MASKS (REAL PHOTO FRENCH POSTCARD BY ALBERT BERGERET)

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This spectacular vintage real photo postcard features a pretty young woman posed as a seller of theatrical masks.  Note the detail of the facial features of each mask. The masks are absolutely beautiful, as is their purveyor. This RPPC was produced by celebrated French artist Albert Bergeret (1859-1932) and published in Nancy, France. Included in Bergeret’s body of work is his series “Women of the Future”. In 1902 he designed a series of postcards depicting women at work in traditionally male professions. Seen below are some examples of these cards. We see a journalist and a soldier. Other cards included a physician, lawyer, and a military general. Bergeret was no feminist. In fact, many of his depictions in the series involved women in skimpy clothing. The pictures were more like pin-ups than a call for equal employment rights for women. Bergeret was a successful businessman. His studio became the leading postcard producer in France. In 1900 he produced 25 million cards and by 1903 he published 75 million postcards. He knew how to grow a business.

women-future3                                                                                                                                                        WOMEN OF THE FUTURE   femmes_avenir_08_sous_off                                                                                                                                                          WOMEN OF THE FUTURE

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REVERSE OF THE MERCHANT OF THE MASKS POSTCARD

Published in: on November 19, 2015 at 1:40 pm  Comments (1)  
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PRETTY WOMAN WITH A TERRIFIC SMILE (VINTAGE REAL PHOTO POSTCARD)

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This vintage real photo postcard features a very pretty woman with a wonderful smile and luminous eyes. She is beautifully dressed and adorned by a necklace and flowers. Note her attracive and very detailed headpiece. The image is colored (hand tinted) and numbered (23) so is obviously part of a series. The name “Watteau” is scripted on the bottom right hand corner of the postcard. My preliminary research could not ascertain whether “Watteau” is the name of the beautiful model seen in this image or if it’s the name of the photographer. My hunch is that it is the name of the model. The reverse of this RPPC is blank, save lines for an address. Therefore, the publisher of this postcard is unknown.  (SOLD)

 

Published in: on November 16, 2015 at 12:00 pm  Comments (2)  
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SYBIL ARUNDALE: BEAUTIFUL THEATER ACTRESS (VINTAGE POSTCARD)

ACTRESS ONE

This item is a vintage postcard featuring the very attractive theater actress Sybil Arundale (1879-1965). Her stage roles included a number of Shakespeare plays. Her sister Grace was also an actress. The postcard was produced by Philco Publishing Company in London, England. It is number 3005 in a series. The photographer was Alexander Bassano (1829-1913) who was a leading royal and high society photographer located in London.   SOLD

ACTRESS TWO

Published in: on October 30, 2015 at 12:00 pm  Comments (1)  
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FRENCH STAGE ACTRESS AND DANCER MLLE DERMINY: PRETTY WOMAN WITH ANTENNAS (REAL PHOTO POSTCARD)

derminy

This vintage real photo postcard features a portrait of French stage actress and dancer Mlle. Derminy. I am unsure of her first name but she is listed in a number of sources as Marthe Derminy, who was an early film actress. The two performers may, or may not be, the same individual. Take a look at the headpiece that Mlle Derminy is wearing in this photograph. She looks like she has antennas coming out of the top of her head. It is as if she just walked out of a space ship. She is a pretty woman and is posed in relatively risque fashion. Derminy was photographed by many of the most celebrated photographers of her era. I have seen portraits of her by Reutlinger, Walery, and Stebbins. This postcard portrait was published by Societe Industrielle de Photograpie which was located in Rueil, France.   SOLD

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Published in: on October 1, 2015 at 12:00 pm  Comments (4)  
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