Portret van Jeanne Dulac before 1900

This is Edouard Grauwet’s “Portret van Jeanne Dulac,” a portrait likely created around 1900 and published in a theatrical program. Here we see an advertisement featuring a fashionable woman holding a glass, juxtaposed with a portrait of a woman identified as Jeanne Dulac. Juxtaposing the ad with the actress's portrait complicates the image; both women become commodities. In the advertisement, the woman's health and beauty are clearly tied to a consumer product. Dulac, an actress, is selling something too: entertainment, yes, but more explicitly, herself. The theatrical context and focus on an actress invite us to consider how women were represented and how they participated in popular culture. Ultimately, this portrait, nestled within the pages of a theater program, underscores the complex interplay of art, commerce, and identity at the turn of the century. It challenges us to reflect on the historical commodification of women.