Élisabeth Sonrel

(French, 1874-1953)

A portrait of a hooded lady

Footnotes

Élisabeth Sonrel grew up in Tours, France, where her father was an amateur artist. It is very likely that it was under his tutelage that Sonrel first began to develop her skills as an artist. After moving to Paris in 1891, Sonrel undertook formal training under Jules Lefebvre (1836–1911) at the private art school, Académie Julien. At this time, although they received the same training, women were taught in separate classes from their male counterparts. Sonrel's decision to study privately is likely in no small part because the public art schools, most notably the École des Beaux-Arts, did not allow women to attend until 1897.

At only eighteen, Sonrel submitted her graduation work from the Académie, and this can be seen at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tours. Soon after, in 1893, she became one of only a few women artists selected to exhibit at the famed Salon des Artistes Français in Paris. She would continue to exhibit at the Salon until late in her career, with her last exhibited work there being shown in 1939.

The quality of Sonrel's work, and the respect and recognition she had from her peers, is highlighted by her being awarded the 1895 Henri Lehmann prize given by the Académie des Beaux-Arts. This prize was awarded every three years to an artist under the age of twenty-five in recognition of academic excellence. She was awarded the prize for her work The Sleep of the Virgin which was subsequently acquired by Felix Faure, the French president at the time, and the work would go on to be exhibited at the 1900 World Fair held in Paris where it was awarded a bronze prize.

Sonrel enjoyed a successful career in the arts and was best known for her poster designs in the Art Nouveau style. However, given the large number that were produced throughout her career, it was her watercolours of meditative female sitters, often from medieval legend, in which we can see her real passion. In these, one can see the influence of early Renaissance painters and the work of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.

In 2021 the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, acquired a work by Sonrel with funds from the Art Fund. Underappreciated since her death, this acquisition highlights the increased recognition and profile of the artist in recent years.