MPS MEN PORTRAITS SERIES
n°3 t
English text translation Anne Menuhin
FOOLISH ELEGANCE
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MEN PORTRAITS _____________________ FOOLISH ELEGANCE
The character represented here by the Flemish painter Jacob Ferdiand Voët, is Luis Francisco de la Cerda, ninth duke of Medinacelli. laden with a dozen other such prestigious titles, he was a Grand of Spain, member of the Council of State and the Council of War, ambassador to the Holy See and Viceroy of Naples. The royal attitude which he adopts in this portrait, made barely two years before he was Viceroy of Naples, is therefore not usurped. It was after the death of King Carlos II and after the difficult Spanish Succession, when he became Prime Minister of King Philip V, that things began to seriously deteriorate for him. Opposed to the French influence of the Bourbons at the Spanish Court, he revealed to the English in 1710 the secret plans for a truce between the United Provinces and France. In doing so he committed, quite consciously,high treason. This earned him royal disgrace and imprisonment until the end of his days at the Alcazar of Segovia, first at Pamplona Castle where he died the following year. The anti-French rage of this character suffered, however, one exception: fashion… of which he was, like many high-ranking characters, a victim! The precision of Jacob Ferdinand Voët's painting allows us to see how closely the Duke followed the fashion canons of his time!
Jacob Ferdinand Voët (1639-1689) Luis Francisco de la Cerda, IXe duke of Medinacelli,1684 Museo del Prado, Madrid.
After 1680, the "haut de chausses" (literally "top of the hose" or leggings today!) which were previously puffy became form fitting. The Duke has them form fitting! At the end of the heel, his stockings (black in Spain, white in France or red in northern Europe) are embroidered with gold thread which extend the patterns painted on the "chausses" (shoes) themselves covered with a bow "en aile du moulin" ( in the form of a wind mill's sail). The Duke has them! From 1680, too, the "justaucorps" (tunic) loaded with gold and silver thread trims was worn over the jacket, which it completely concealed rendering it a kind of underwear. The front and sleeves of the jacket are made of rich fabric. The Duke has them! The short sleeves of the justaucorps, rolled up to the elbow are embroidered to reveal the bundled lace of the shirt, the "petits oies". The "jabot" or ruffle, an imposing lace ornament that succeeds the "fraise", stiff pleated neck ruff, in the history of costume, crowns the tunic and attaches to the plastron (in front of the chest) by the collar of the shirt. Its name comes from the pocket formed by a bulge of the oesophagus in some birds-the "jabot". The Duke has it all… and much more! Finally, the sumptuous sculpted amour helmet , placed on the table to the right of this Grand of Spain attesting to his ancient lineage is surmounted by a plume of two-tone ostrich feathers or "panache" matching the colour of the whole outfit.
MEN PORTRAITS _____________________ FOOLISH ELEGANCE
Glyn Warren Philpot (1884 -1937) Man in white, 1933
In the spring of 1931, Philpot moved to Paris, with his friend Vivian Forbes at the Hôtel Le Royal, boulevard Raspail. Very quickly, he decided to take a studio for himself, at 216 Boulevard Raspail, a Bauhaus style space, designed by Bruno el Houken for Helena Rubenstein, and divided into artists' workshops. It was in this workshop that many of Philpot's best works were produced ... The obviously elegant Man in White , no doubt painted during a stay in the Basque Country, remains anonymous to this day. He may be a young Basque sportsman, as the beret seems to indicate… Although, in the 1930s, the French Basque country and its games of Chistera and Cesta Punta were so fashionable that the elegant young people adopted all the codes of the genre, even if they were neither athletic nor Basque! Far from being anonymous, on the other hand, this little white sport shirt of little pique jersey, a light and particularly airy fabric, with short sleeves and a ribbed knit collar (to give it body and protect the neck of the players from the sun) is not unknown to us. Originally intended for tennis players, it was popularised by tennis champion René Lacoste and was to make an international career that has never faltered since. From 1933, it became the first sportswear displaying the name of a brand, in this case: Lacoste. No crocodile or label on the one worn by our elegant youngster here, and for good reason ... it was 3 years before the birth of the crocodile brand! Elegant as he was, this anonymous man in white knew how to maintain the immaculate whiteness of the original sportswear. A touch of chic! In the panoply of this elegant perfectionist, we also notice the beret firmly pressed on his head although languidly tilted over one ear, like the Basque shepherds; the leather belt with silver buckle clasping white pants (delicately gathered at the waist) and the watch on the wrist, worn like an expensive jewel ...