02 May 2010

what Madame Errazuriz knew

.
Madame Eugenia Errazuriz in 1929

Picasso drew Madame 24 times. The woman Picasso met was approaching middle age.Eugenia had been married to a wealthy amateur landscape painter, lived in Paris and London, and back to Paris when her husband died. Her life was full, her admirers were numerous. It would be years before Picasso knew and fell for Eugenia- as mentor, muse, patron- There was no affair-but her influence was staggering. She is said to have refined the bohemian Picasso, introduced him to Diaghilev, prepared him for his audience with the Spanish King and polished him for his courtship with Olga Koklova-ballerina. Eugenia also provided the two with their honeymoon spot in Biarritz, where Picasso painted frescoes for a room in La Mimoseraie-her villa. Picasso said of the sketch of Eugenia below, "it's so handsome,I wouldn't even have let my father have it." According to the John Richardson HG article this sketch is identified as Eugenia-though it is debated to be her beautiful great niece Patricia. She does however look rather beautiful still in the first photograph dated 1929.

Picasso 1918



by Man Ray


the following drawings by Picasso
Decorations chez Madame Errazuritz
Biarritz, Summer/1918, Mural paintings




designer Chanel had a villa just next door-and Olga loved the 
clinging bathing suits she made, Picasso painting them here.







Much painted, admired, Madame Errazuriz's was painted by the likes of Sargent, Boldini, Blanche,Chartran, Helleu, Madrazo and Conder.. Sargent was one of the first to paint Eugenia when he met her as a young newley wed. A little in love with Eugenia, Sargent first met her in 1880 Venice and encountered her again in London, early 1900. An "A" List of artists were inspired by Eugenia- Augustus Johns, Walter Sickert (whom she collected), Braque, Diaghilev, Artur Rubinstein, Cocteau, Stravinsky, Blaise Cendrars and Le Corbusier. Proust referred to her specifically in his epic Remembrances of Things Past, "touched by art as if by heavenly grace, dwelling "in apartments filled with Cubist paintings, while a Cubist painter lived one for them, and they live only for him." Proust had been present when Eugenia  unpacked Picasso's Cubist canvases and drawings after the war.

... as they saw her, before Picasso







 1880






Conder
date unknown



Boldini 
1892



Sargent 
1905

Have you ever thought about the inspiration for bringing an inelegant rustic ladder into a soigne room originated? & when? Look no further than the elegant soigne Madame Eugenia Errazuriz. Cecil Beaton, in his Glass of Fashion (1954) wrote: "Eugenia's 'effect on the taste of the last fifty years has been so enormous that the whole aesthetic of modern interior decoration, and many of the concepts of simplicity... generally acknowledged today, can be laid at her remarkable doorstep.'
Perhaps some of Eugenia's design aesthetic preferences were a result of her education as a young girl by English nuns in her home country of Chile. Madame was a Franciscan lay nun and had her habit- a simple black shift-designed by Chanel. Jean Michel Frank wrote about her Paris apartment in Harper's Bazaar, accompanying the article, photographs by Kollar captured the foyer in the 1938 article.


"I love my house as it looks very clean and very poor" EE

the Hallway of Eugenia Errazuriz's Paris home
photographed by Kollar for Harper's Bazaar

Frank wrote "Her influence is indispensable." In his memoirs Stravinsky wrote, "Her friendship touched me deeply. She had a subtle understanding of modern art, which was unparalleled in anyone of her generation." She was comfortable discussing mysticism, astrology, religion and she, like Picasso, was terribly superstitious. Her patronage to the arts, & Her Artists, was in the spirit of alms giving- never financial aid.

Simply furnished with emerald green garden table and chairs, large baskets, and  a gray coatrack decorated with a basket and an umbrella- laundry baskets and hampers stood along side it all. When Eugenia found the garden chairs the shop owner was horrified when she announced the folding garden chairs were for her Salon. Errazuriz used both dining and living spaces in her home as one large space-no room  should be wasted. An old orchard ladder stands beside a modern deal cupboard Madame found in a street market. It must have been a shock to the hangers on of la Belle Epoque and the proponents of Elsie de Wolfe's design aesthetic. Of course- it appeared spontaneous-but to the contrary- it was a much studied. The slipcovers- in plain white or indigo-were ruthlessly tailored by the Balenciaga of upholsterers, chez Leitz. Never one to discriminate against the plainest mattress ticking-Madame would have dresses made from the material. Paul Morand remembers "she looked like a van Dongen in her blue straw hat, her dress of black and white mattress ticking, and a slash of carmine on her lips." 


Have you ever thought about the inspiration for bringing an inelegant rustic ladder into a soigne room originated? & when? Look no further than the elegant soigne Madame Eugenia Errazuriz. Cecil Beaton, in his Glass of Fashion (1954) wrote: "Eugenia's 'effect on the taste of the last fifty years has been so enormous that the whole aesthetic of modern interior decoration, and many of the concepts of simplicity... generally acknowledged today, can be laid at her remarkable doorstep.'
Perhaps some of Eugenia's design aesthetic preferences were a result of her education as a young girl by English nuns in her home country of Chile. Madame was a Franciscan lay nun and had her habit- a simple black shift-designed by Chanel. Jean Michel Frank wrote about her Paris apartment in Harper's Bazaar, accompanying the article, photographs by Kollar captured the foyer in the 1938 article.


"I love my house as it looks very clean and very poor" EE





Jean Michel Frank studied Eugenia Errazuriz-absorbing all of the tenets of her modern approach to interiors-Frank would go on to realize many of her ideas in his brief but brilliant design career. Eugenia would never decorate for anyone else. Her choices were her own and belong to know one else. Her design was fearless-No one else was that brave.Certainly Errazuriz influenced these designers and their fast becoming- iconic-rooms. I especially see the Frederic Mechiche rooms as indicative of Errazuriz's.  In the Mechiche rooms, there is a luxury, along with a spareness, that sets each element apart.

Rose Tarlow, 1990's



"Elegance means elimination." EE


Sills and Huniford


"Pas de vivelots."(biblelots) EE


Frederic Mechiche
(from the World of Interiors April 1997)




"A house that doesn't alter is a dead house.
One must change the furniture... rearrange it continually". EE



There was no excess.
Beaton inventories her salon-"an inkwell, blotter, a vase of fresh leaves, a flowering plant in an 18th century jardiniere, a magnificent commode," a Riesener bureau plat. She housed the objects she cherished in two large red lacquer cupboards. She used unlined blue and white stripe curtains with classic French furniture, House plants had to be aromatic- rose geranium, lemon verbena, lavender, jasmine-all in terra cotta pots- another often seen detail in design today. "Everything in Aunt Eugenia's house smelled so good." (EE's great niece Patricia). One 18th century bergere chair purchased by the adoring great niece- that Eugenia wanted desperately disappeared in just a month. Surprised to see the beloved chair gone, her niece inquired as to its whereabouts. Auntie replied, "I couldn't resist a change. I saw something I liked even better so I sold the chair to Emilio Terry."

However, nothing trumped the paintings that hung on whitewashed walls" Man in a Bowler Hat (1915), Seated Man (1915-1916) Her paintings remained fixed-her furniture was likely to move about- or Out







"A house that does not alter, is a dead house.
 One must change the furniture, 
or at least rearrange it continually.
This perpetual renewing is the beauty
and the strength of fashion.
In a house where nothing budges, the eye,
too long accustomed to the same scene
ends by seeing nothing." 
Eugenia Errazuriz
(the same could be said of people)

Eugenia, who insisted that if the " Kitchen is not as well kept as the salon, if there are masses of old things lying about the bureau drawers, you cannot have a beautiful house-Throw out and keep throwing out." (Cleanliness is next to Godliness?) Living to the old age of 90, she became very frail after a car accident and declared, "I am tired of living, I wish to help God to take me out of this life." She refused food, letting go of her earthly possession- easy for Madame- she had been practicing all of her life.


further reading:
John Richardson's Sacred Monsters, Sacred Masters
Cecil Beaton's The Glass of Fashion
House and Garden April 1987, Tastemakers by John Richardson
NY Times.com The Queen of Clean
Jean-Michel Frank 
.

31 comments:

  1. A mentor - she truly inspired many with her carefully edited - rich life.
    pve

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  2. Oh . . . You are soooo Good-!
    Thank You for this Post-!
    M.

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  3. The Mechiche interiors make me weak.

    Wonderful post---I've always found her an intriguing personality---and such taste!

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  4. Great post, amazing blog, I often read blogs for some time before I comment. Yours is a great inspiration, thanks for sharing. Please stop at my blog to pick up a little something. Love from London x

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  5. How fascinating! I'd never heard of her at all.

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  6. Women of that period went through an extreme transition, didn't they? From prudent Victorian behavior to the anything-goes twenties. What a whirlwind of changing expectations & emotions.

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  7. Beautiful flowing presentation of inspiring Errazuriz. One wonders did she become a Fraciscan because it suited her aesthetic? Her artistic life and purist approach seem a vocation, as with contemporary Eileen Gray - with different results. Both were so fervent, but EE's crusades found more converts.

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  8. A fascinating and beautiful romp. That Edwardian-early 19th century was an amazing time.

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  9. What a stunning post! I new her from Picasso's paintings, but did not know much more! She grew more beautiful as she aged! All she said hols so true!
    Her sentiments about the changing of houses is my motto and I could not agree more that it is equally true for people!

    Thank you for a morning reading of style and inspiration!

    XX
    Victoria

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  10. Perfection the way you have brought this woman into our world and placed her with the designers you selected.She was ahead of her time. I have read that the Gertrude was a touch jealous of this lady but I suspect Picasso's wives were as well. Inspiring LA.

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  11. You must be tired of hearing this .. .
    but, I'll say it again (and, no doubt, again!):
    Remarkable post. Perhaps my all time favorite.

    I want to wrap every word and image and put them in their own special box, to open when I need something very special to refresh my life.

    RUTHLESSLY Tailored Slipcovers ?? !

    I've long felt that slipcovers should appear to have been stitched by the nanny -
    No longer .

    Nothing but ruthlessly tailored by
    Balenciaga will do.

    Jjj

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  12. YES, another voyeur comes out of the woodwork...
    B R A V O , Little Augury,
    First read about Eugenia Errazuriz in The Glass of Fashion back in the seventies. The fear and dread that she would be another unsung hero of the 20th century to this day is horrifying. After reading this post...feel like my torch song days for Eugenia are over...Thank you.
    Que Viva Eugenia!
    Que Viva Little Augury!

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  13. Absolutely wonderful. Such a pleasure
    to read and see.

    All the best, D

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  14. some girls just have it!

    as for me, it would have to be ruthlessly tailored slipcovers.

    also loved your min hogg post. is she in the air? i was thinking about her last week and how i missed her. i have all the photos of her flats and spanish house. they will probably go to my grave with me. she was not afraid of blue and pink together!

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  15. Mademoiselle Poirot, I am delighted you said hello today and glad little augury has been inspiring you. I will drop by to visit. pgt

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  16. I found this woman fascinating there has not been enough written about Madame. I was fascinated by her, and the more I read the more I wanted to find out more. She inspired so many. Her own poet, Her own composer. As to her portraits there definitely is something there is movement and energy. Barbara and Home-yes so many changes, Eugenia seemed to embrace it all by being very self aware and confident.

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  17. PVE- edit was a word that came up in all the references to her!

    Rachel-so glad you like this post and find EE as interesting as I do.

    Debra, Haven-many thanks.

    Jjj and Paradis- I know exactly what you mean. I do like them straight with plain ticking-tailored to within an inch of their life!

    Victoria ARt,that is a wonderful observation about aging gracefully and beautifully, a topic that must be as old as the ages.

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  18. DownEast, I love that one too-in fact all of his work stops me in my tracks, there is apparent "ruthless" editing yet there is spirit and energy in his rooms. Nothing static in the least.

    Le Style- I do know she was extremely devout.In some ways it seems bees to honey and them she could be a terror.John Richardson's chapter is called Picasso's Other Mother.

    Anon. Yes it was fun to see immediate identified designers practicing, and well known today.Another point is how the examples are some of my favourite rooms. I do not Edit as I should- as anyone. I hope like Eugenia-I become more so with age!

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  19. Julio, I love that enthusiasm- Yours and Madame's. Thank you and yes she should be talked about and discussed. Her native Chile should rekindle the interest too. She still has family there I believe. Please return, perhaps something else about Madame will emerge! pgt

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  20. Mlle Paradis, Just quickly popped into your paradis! it looks wonderful. Please post the Min flat. I have been searching it out through my own archives and a fellow reader and friend has as well-to know avail.And there seems to be nothing she is not afraid of! pgt

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  21. One of your very best posts~filled with delicious surprises! Had no idea that Madame E had been painted by the great Boldini.

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  22. Mr Worthington. Now that is a compliment. Isn't the Boldini stunning and the Blanche looks just like the photograph of her. I did note in my earlier comments the movement and energy in all of her portraits. I would love to know more and read more. She is a wealth of intrigue. I find her ability to stay relevant and able to inspire generations. pgt

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  23. I came to your blog looking for a history of women's fashion and found something even more precious: the connection between Picasso, Diaghilev and Madame Errazuriz. Thanks for the link :)
    Hels
    http://melbourneblogger.blogspot.com/2010/04/sergei-diaghilev-impresario-genius-and.html

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  24. LA,

    Just when I think you can't surpass yourself, you do just that. There is so much here to savor, note and remember.

    I am transfixed by the beauty of Picasso's sketches of her. Often, I am left somewhat ambivalent of his efforts, but there is, obvious, adoration expressed.

    "Have you ever thought about the inspiration for bringing an inelegant rustic ladder into a soigne room originated? & when?"

    For years, one such ladder, very much resembling the one in the hallway of Errazuriz's Paris home, has graced the corner of my kitchen. Only now, do I learn who it can be credited to, which makes it all the more alluring.

    I'm also just the least bit captivated by the idea of Eugenia's education with the English nuns of a convent (a similarity I share, though not in Chile) and its influence on her aesthetics. I always loved the stark habit of the nuns in look, movement and style.

    And, of course, the quote on "a house that does not alter" is one we all should embrace.

    A truly memorable post.

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  25. EA, You know all of these things are fascinating- and too that you can identify with them. I have a ladder too, now relegated to my basement due to the height restraints of this house. As you know Chanel was greatly influenced here too by the nuns attire. I have always been drawn to it. I am so glad you found things here you could ponder. Gaye

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  26. This was a fabulous post. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you. xx

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  27. Such a satisfying read. Fascinating that she was such a hub in the network of modern aesthetics. I feel like I just attended an incredibly well researched seminar complete with wonderful slides and a reading list. Thank you--L

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  28. Willow, thanks!

    Linda- thank you Linda, she was in the hub seriously. I found some interesting things about Picasso in her later years, I may post a bit later. pgt

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  29. "I love my house as it looks very clean and very poor" EE | A mantra for clutter-hounds and/or too much frou-frou. A wonderful post filled with so many interesting historical details/references. LOVED!

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  30. Great post - I discovered Eugenie after walking by & noticing the stone gateposts of her Biarritz villa, la Mimoseraie - all that remains now of a fascinating household.

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