Antique French Portrait Miniature, Pastels, Listed Artist, c.1880 Beautiful Young Girl

The portrait painter and pastellist Clotilde Juillerat, born Gérard (1806-1904). This pupil of Paul Delaroche exhibited at the Salon from 1833 and until 1861. Until 1839, she exhibited under non-maiden name, Gérard.   A young beauty, perhaps 12-13 years of age, just in that transition from child to woman. She has the most soulful huge brown eyes, elegant arched eyebrows, and lips that would combine very soon to make a stunning woman of her. The pastel sketch, painting, is lightly and so elegantly done, the very talented and confident artist's work, and dated. I will leave it to you. In this era several women were working in pastels, producing works that enliven the D'Orsay Museum collection and many others today. Mary Cassatt, Berthe Morisot, Others, and I feel a kinship between this pastel portrait and their works. Perhaps known to each other, these artists. A simple elegant gilded wood frame and a deep enlarged oval mat creates a stunning vignette of the girl's sketch. She definitely