Mademoiselle Fiocre

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The captivating beauty of Mademoiselle Fiocre exemplifies the exceptional talents of Carpeaux, who has left behind an impressive collection of Second Empire portraits.\r\nIn 1870, Eugénie Fiocre, a renowned prima ballerina at the Paris Opera, reached the pinnacle of her career and was also the charming star of Coppelia. Carpeaux created this bust while working on one of his major works, Dance, a bas-relief for the facade of the Opera house.\r\nThe marble, which was showcased at the Salon of 1870, earned admiration from the Goncourt brothers.\r\nUnlike Degas, who had portrayed her as a ballerina several years earlier, Carpeaux depicts Eugénie Fiocre in the style of his usual models - duchesses, marchionesses and princesses. Her smooth bust emerges from flowing folds of drapery borrowed from the finest portraits of the baroque era and is perched on a classical pedestal.\r\nThis elegant formula enhances all of Carpeaux’s female busts. By paying tribute to the curve of her back, delicate features, pert nose and captivating beauty, he succeeds in capturing what his model would become.\r\nIn reality, the fate of dancers in the 19th century was not an enviable one: poverty, decline and prostitution awaited them after leaving the Opera. Eugénie Fiocre proved to be a fortunate exception: she married well after a career crowned with glory.