The Madame B Album c. 1870s

This hand-painted fan design comes to us from the mid-19th century, by Marie-Blanche Hennelle Fournier. The fan shape is adorned with ribbons, frames, and cherubic figures. The cherubs, or putti, are symbols of love and innocence, traceable to classical antiquity, where Eros and Cupid embodied desire. During the Renaissance, these figures experienced a revival, appearing in countless paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts. Here, the cherubs are almost haunting as they are frozen, decorative, and distanced. The ribbons, framing a central portrait, also carry their own weight. Ribbons often symbolize bonds and connections, yet here they seem to adorn an absence, with the two frames left empty. What do these figures tell us of the artist’s cultural memory, or perhaps, subconscious longings? The fan is full of subtle emotional complexities. As cultural symbols, these motifs never truly vanish; they resurface, evolve, and take on new meanings in different historical contexts.