28 - [MEYER, Marie Françoise Constance]

[MEYER, Marie Françoise Constance] Complete Collection of Portraits of the Grand Eagles and Grand Officers of the Legion of Honor. Paris, 1811, published by the author on Rue de Touraine & Guilleminet, bookseller, Rue des Fossés-Montmartre. 8 vols., in-4, paperback (original booklets announcing 8 installments), each containing a series of 12 bust portraits of the most important figures of the imperial era—TOTALING 96 PORTRAITS, including: Napoleon Bonaparte, Portalis, Ferino, Ney, Suchet, Cambacérès, Alexander I, Oudinot, Frederick, King of Württemberg, Frederick Augustus, King of Saxony, Jacques Lannes, Duke of Montebello, Macdonald... Some portraits are signed by Mlle Meyer (or Mayer), Mlle de Noireterre, or Mme le Suire, among others. A student of Jean-Baptiste Greuze and later of Pierre-Paul Prud’hon, Constance Meyer had a romantic relationship with the latter. An artist of great sensitivity, she met a tragic end in 1821, taking her own life at the painter’s home following tensions in their relationship. Displaying remarkable stylistic diversity, these portraits are distinguished at times by striking realism and at other times by a slight exaggeration of the subjects’ features. Far from any conventional representation, these portraits demonstrate a genuine concern for likeness and the individualization of facial features. André Monglond, VIII, p. 677, lists 118 portraits in this series and provides a complete catalog based on the copy held at the Print Room. GOOD OVERALL CONDITION: wear, a few tears in the booklets, a few pinholes, creases, and rare stains.