Dame en Deshabillé Allant Par La Ville

A coloured print of a woman, 'Dame en Deshabillé Allant Par La Ville' (A woman in informal dress walking through the city), inscribed, I D De Saint Iean: Del:. This print is likely to be copied from an original made by Jean Dieu de Saint-Jean, with or without his knowledge. Copying fashion plates was common practice in the seventeenth and eighteenth century.

A woman in negligée (informal wear). Her hair is curled at the sides, as was fashionable during that period of time. She is also wearing a vizard mask, which would have a bead on the inside so the mouth could keep it in place. Masks were used to ensure the complexion would be untouched by the sun and that she could be private in public as it was unusual for women to go out by themselves. Because of the anonymity and freedom that came with wearing such a mask, they were often associated with prostitution.

The print was designed by Jean Dieu de Saint-Jean (1654-1695), to whom about 100 prints are attributed from the period 1678-1695. They mostly portray the dress of men and women of high rank, often at the court of France. His father, also named Jean Dieu, was a painter too. When his son was accepted to the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in Paris he changed his name to Jean Dieu de Saint-Jean, after his patron saint, in order to distinguish himself from his father and from other artists named Dieu. Though De Saint-Jean initially was trained as a portrait painter he is mostly known for his fashion plates.

Further reading
Colas, R., Bibliographie générale du Costume et de la Mode. Description des suites, recueils, séries, revues et livres Français et étrangers relatifs au costume civil, militaire et religieux, aux modes, aux coiffures et aux divers accessoires de l’habillement, avec une table méthodique et un index alphabétique, Paris 1933, entry 2629.

Ribeiro, A., Fashion and Fiction. Dress in Art and Literature in Stuart England, London 2005.

Vaast, C. and J. Dunford, 'Jean Dieu de Saint-Jean (1654-1695). Dessinateur de gravures des mode et peintre d’un portrait de Marin Marais', Musique Images Instruments vol. 10 (2008), pp. 172-181.