May Belfort
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Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec was inspired by café concerts, popular places of Parisian entertainment that featured singers or other performers. This drawing depicts May Belfort, one such entertainer, who the artist discovered in 1895 during a visit to the popular nightclub Les Décadents. Belfort soon became one of Lautrec's favorite models and is seen here wearing the ruffled dress and bonnet that became a signature of her performances. The singer adopted a babyish voice and stood motionless on the stage, encouraging her fans to shout lyrics along with her. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec depicted May Belfort in numerous prints, drawings, posters, and paintings.
The museum’s own description, in English. Licence: CC0
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Details
- Maker
- Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864–1901)
- Date
- 1895
- Medium
- oil on millboard
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 62.5 x 48.2 cm (24 5/8 x 19 in.); Framed: 86 x 71.5 x 8.9 cm (33 7/8 x 28 1/8 x 3 1/2 in.)
- Place of origin
- France
- Held by
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland · Not on view
- Credit line
- Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr.
Image: Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0
More by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Shown in
- Nineteenth-Century French Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of ArtJan 20, 2023 – Jun 11, 2023
- Mary Cassatt and the Feminine Ideal in 19th-Century ParisOct 14, 2012 – Jan 20, 2013
- Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of ArtOct 21, 2007 – Jan 13, 2008
- Master Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of ArtAug 27, 2000 – Oct 17, 2000
- Art and the StageMay 22, 1981 – Aug 16, 1981
