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Bas-relief of portion of frieze with acanthus ornament enclosing vases and honesuckle in terra cotta

Louise Laffon

1864

photographic

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

Impressionism Realism Late 19th Century

Dominant colour

Bas-relief of portion of frieze with acanthus ornament enclosing vases and honesuckle in terra cotta is a 1864 photographic by Louise Laffon, a Impressionism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: Louise Laffon
When & what style?: 1864 · Impressionism
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

Louise Laffon made this terra cotta photo in 1863–64. It shows a carved frieze with acanthus leaves, vases, and honeysuckle. Photography was new then, so Cole pushed the South Kensington Museum to collect it. Cole wanted artists and students to use photos like study prints. The museum stored them in its National Art Library for easy copying. Look up the artist who took this photo: Laffon, Louise

The story of this work

Overview

The Victoria and Albert Museum holds a bas-relief photograph by Louise Laffon from 1864, depicting a portion of a frieze with acanthus ornamentation framing vases and honeysuckle in terra cotta. Part of a series of 100 albumen prints documenting sculptures and objects from the Campana Collection at the Musée Napoléon III (now the Louvre), the image was acquired by the museum in five separate purchases totaling 500 prints. Laffon’s work was produced under the gender-neutral moniker "L. Laffon" at her Paris studio, *Photographie Lord Byron*. Surviving examples of her original gilded mounts…

Read the full account in the museum source.

About the artist

Artist

Louise Laffon

Louise Laffon (1828–1885), was a French photographer and painter. She was one of the first female professional photographers in France. She had a studio in Paris between 1859 and 1876.

See the richer artist page