Pierre-Louis Pierson ( Hinckange (

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

), 13 December 1822 –

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, 22 March 1913) was a French

portrait photographer Portrait photography, or portraiture, is a type of photography aimed toward capturing the personality of a person or group of people by using effective lighting, backdrops, and poses. A portrait photograph may be artistic or clinical. Frequentl ...

. His studio was located at 5, boulevard des Capucines, on the border between the

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds, The Second, or (The) 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Minute and second of arc, ...

and 9th arrondissements in the centre of

Early life

Pierson became interested in photography while the medium was in its infancy in the early 1840s. He had a photography studio in Paris as early as 1844, and enjoyed a solid reputation. For many years, he located his studio at 5, boulevard des Capucines, where he was associated with the Mayer brothers (Léopold-Ernest Mayer and Louis-Frédéric Mayer). At that address, their company grew into a formidable enterprise.

Photographer of His Majesty the Emperor Napoléon III

Initially using the

daguerreotype Daguerreotype was the first publicly available photography, photographic process, widely used during the 1840s and 1850s. "Daguerreotype" also refers to an image created through this process. Invented by Louis Daguerre and introduced worldwid ...

, the Pierson-Mayer studio became one of the first to specialise in portrait photography retouched with watercolour or oils. The French Emperor

Napoléon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

came to prefer their studio, particularly once he established the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...

in 1852. Pierson created numerous portraits of the French Imperial family during the apex of the Second Empire. Between 1855 and 1862, at the peak of the Pierson-Mayer studio's prominence, people of all types came to have their pictures taken there, including the imperial court, the aristocracy, powerful businessmen, actresses and musicians. Pierson and the Mayer brothers photographed the kings of Württemberg,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, and

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. Starting in 1862, their clientele became more varied, and by 1866, included people of all socioeconomic backgrounds.

Photographer of the Countess of Castiglione

Pierson first met the

Countess of Castiglione Virginia Oldoini Rapallini, Countess of Castiglione (23 March 1837 – 28 November 1899), better known as La Castiglione, was an Italian aristocrat who achieved notoriety as a mistress of Emperor Napoleon III of France. She was also a significant ...

in 1856, and he would remain her official photographer for forty years. In 1867, Pierson exhibited his portrait of the countess posed as the Queen of Hearts in the French section of photography at that year's Exposition Universelle in Paris. Pierson and the countess began an intense photographer–model collaboration between 1861 and 1867, wherein she became a master of the art of ''

mise-en-scène (; or "what is put into the scene") is the stage design and arrangement of actors in scenes for a theatre or film production, both in the visual arts through storyboarding, visual themes, and cinematography and in narrative-storytelling through ...

'' and developed roles of a

madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

, battered woman, mother, and the high-styled woman dressed in extravagant outfits. In a playful atmosphere which was left largely to improvisation, the countess, with Pierson's help, created many different personalities. Dresses, hairstyles, and attitudes were all studied to dramatic effect. Thanks to the effects of mirrors, she could present different conceptions of the self at the same time. Certain studies show her hair extended; others, cropped. Always at her disposal, Pierson photographed her exposed legs and feet, which were considered erotic imagery, very daring for the time. Nonetheless, during the countess's lifetime these photos were hers and Pierson's secret. Between 1856 and 1895, the countess posed for more than 450 portraits. This frenetic series of photos, quite rare for the time, was one of the first examples of the photographic self-portrait.Pierre Apraxine Xavier, La Divine Comtesse: Photographs of the Countess de Castiglione, Demange

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

(New York, N.Y.), New Haven; London :

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, 2000.

The Braun Company, 1878–1913

In 1878, Pierson went into partnership with his son-in-law Gaston Braun, the heir to the Braun Company and the brother-in-law of Léon Clément. They managed to resurrect the Société Adolphe Braun et Compagnie from the brink of collapse. From then on, Pierson's photographic collection belonged to Braun. In 1883, the Braun Company signed an exclusive thirty-year contract with the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

with the goal of reproducing photographically some 7,000 works of art. The photographs deposited into the inventory of the museum became the property of the French state, and in exchange, the Braun company became the official photographers for the Louvre. In 1889, the company became Braun, Clément & Compagnie. Their working studio was rebuilt and completely electrified between 1897 and 1899. In 1910, the company was renamed Braun et Compagnie. By this time, the company had opened already a branch studio in New York City and would open one in London the following year.

Gallery

Victor Lefranc par Pierson.jpg, Victor Lefranc Persigny.jpg, Victor de Persigny Billault, Adolphe - 2.jpg, Adolphe Billault Mayer, Léopold Ernest (1817-ca. 1865) & Pierson, Pierre Louis (1822-1913) - Camillo Benso di Cavour (+1861).jpg,

Camillo Cavour Camillo Paolo Filippo Giulio Benso, Count of Cavour, Isolabella and Leri (; 10 August 1810 – 6 June 1861), generally known as the Count of Cavour ( ; ) or simply Cavour, was an Italian politician, statesman, businessman, economist, and no ...

Mayer, Léopold Ernest (1817-ca. 1865) & Pierson, Pierre Louis (1822-1913) - Luigi Lablanche (1794-1858).jpg, Luigi Lablache Pierson,Pierre Louis - Eugène Chevandier de Valdrome.jpg, Eugène Chevandier de Valdrôme Pierson, Pierre Louis - Général de Mac Mahon.jpg, Patrice de Mac Mahon Pierson, Pierre Louis - Duc de Morny.jpg,

Duc de Morny Charles Auguste Louis Joseph de Morny, 1st Duc de Morny (; 15/16 September 181110 March 1865) was a French statesman. Biography Morny was born in Switzerland, and was the extra-marital son of Hortense de Beauharnais (the wife of Louis Bonaparte ...

Pierson, Pierre Louis - Victor Duruy.jpg,

Victor Duruy Jean Victor Duruy (; 10 September 1811 – 25 November 1894) was a French historian and statesman. Life Duruy was born in Paris, the son of a factory worker, and at first intended for his father's trade. Having passed brilliantly through the � ...

Pierson, Pierre Louis - Charles Rigault de Genouilly.jpg,

Charles Rigault de Genouilly Admiral Pierre-Louis-Charles Rigault de Genouilly (, 12 April 1807 – 4 May 1873) was a French naval officer. He fought with distinction in the Crimean War and the Second Opium War, but is chiefly remembered today for his command of French and S ...

Pierson, Pierre Louis - Charles Cousin-Mautauban.jpg, Charles Cousin-Montauban Pierson, Pierre Louis - Jean-Baptiste Philibert Vaillant.jpg, Jean-Baptiste Philibert Vaillant Pierson, Pierre Louis - Eugene Rouher.jpg, Eugene Rouher

Expositions

* 2000:

, New York * 2000: Palazzo Cavour,

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

Films

* ''La Séance'', 2015, short film by Edouard de La Poëze, starring

Fanny Ardant Fanny Marguerite Judith Ardant (born 22 March 1949) is a French actress and film director. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including two César Awards and a Lumière Award. Early life Ardant was born on 22 March 1949, in Saumur, ...

and Paul Hamy

References

External links

Les frères Mayer et Pierre-Louis Pierson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pierson, Pierre-Louis Place of birth missing Place of death missing 1822 births 1913 deaths 2nd arrondissement of Paris 9th arrondissement of Paris 19th-century French male artists 19th-century French photographers 20th-century French male artists 20th-century French photographers Artists from Grand Est French portrait photographers Napoleon III People from Moselle (department) Photographers from Paris Pioneers of photography Second French Empire