Cecil Beaton (British, 1904-1980)


The Pre-War Belle stamped with Cecil Beaton Studio Sale stamp (lower right); further stamped with Vogue stamp and inscribed with date and page number of issue '5/24/30 59' (on sheet verso)ink, pen and ink, wash and pencil38.5 x 27cm (15 3/16 x 10 5/8in).
|ProvenanceThe Artist's Studio Sale, Christie's, London, 7 June 1984 (part lot, lot number untraced)Private Collection, U.K.LiteratureVogue, 25 May 1930, ill.p.59The present work was used to illustrate an article written by Cecil Beaton, titled 'Where Is The Belle Today?' published in American Vogue, May 1930, with the caption, 'The Pre-War Belle Clings to her Vintage'. Beaton lamented the decline of famous beauties such as Lillie Langtry, writing: 'Beauty as a profession is gone. Miss Atlantic City has no relation to the genuine article. The real Belle, in all her glory, lingers only in effigy on the covers of the boxes of Havana cigars' (Vogue, 25 May 1930, p.108).