Adèle Foucher, Mrs. Victor HUGO (1803–1868). Autograph lette - Lot 354

Lot n° 354
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1000 - 1500 EUR
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Result : 6 594EUR
Adèle Foucher, Mrs. Victor HUGO (1803–1868). Autograph lette - Lot 354
Adèle Foucher, Mrs. Victor HUGO (1803–1868). Autograph letter signed “Adèle,” Saint Helier [Jersey], May 12 [1853], to a friend; 4 pages, in-8. A very interesting letter discussing the daguerreotypes and photographs of the Hugo family in Jersey. Adèle announces that she is sending “portraits of my sons; they come from Auguste [Vacquerie]’s studio. These portraits are made on paper, whereas Charles uses glass. Both photographic processes are equally good, but produce different results. Glass is more precise and delicate, while paper is broader and richer in tone. – As you can see, dear madam, we are quite involved in art. Our little house has been transformed into a studio; Toto [François-Victor], the daguerreotypist, in particular, has taken over the living quarters. We hardly ever go out; a small garden that we tend serves as our exercise, and it is weeded, raked, and pruned regularly, just like the one belonging to the grocer at the gate. My husband is saddened by this and says wistfully that we are depriving him of the right to criticize the bourgeoisie"... Yet they do not live in solitude; outlaws frequent their home, and her daughter Adèle attracts suitors. She recounts young Adèle’s debut at the ball, “dressed in white like an ermine”... She suffers from “the degradation of France,” which is sinking into shame... She is moved by the atmosphere of freedom that reigns in Jersey, “that little country that governs itself”... Spain, where they had hoped to spend the winter, has been closed to them. She asks her friend to tell her what is happening in France. One last piece of advice: “Have the portraits mounted on white paper; the margins must be very wide”...
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