Vitrioleuse (The Acid Thrower), 1894
Eugène Samuel Grassetexpand_more
Photo-relief print, with hand-stencilled colorexpand_more
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edward A. Foster, 1965expand_more P.13,411
Not on Viewexpand_more
When writer Henri Bouchet called the colors in L'Estampe originale "cruel, violent, and color-blind," he may have had Eugène Grasset's figure in mind. Intruding at a diagonal in imitation of Japanese actor prints, she is as agitated as the acid sloshing in her green hand. Her hair seems to curl into satanic little horns. In Grasset's day, scorned women would attempt to disfigure their rivals with sulfuric acid. Concurrent with the trend in vitriolage was a fascination with hysteria, to which women were supposedly more susceptible than men.
Details
- Title
- Vitrioleuse (The Acid Thrower)
- Artist Life
- (born Switzerland), 1841 - 1917
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- P.13,411
- Provenance
- Edward A. Foster, Minneapolis; his gift to MIA, 1965
- Catalogue Raisonne
- Stein & Karshan 30
- Curator Approved
This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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