Portret van Louise Marie van Orléans

About this artwork

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Art Historical Context

This steel engraving, created in 1832 by Irish-born artist Erin Corr, presents a formal portrait of Louise Marie van Orléans. Measuring 550 by 407 millimeters, the work showcases the precision and fine detail that steel engraving made possible during the early nineteenth century. Unlike earlier copper plates, steel allowed engravers to produce sharper lines and more durable prints, making such portraits widely reproducible for books, periodicals, and private collections. The presence of an inscription suggests the work was intended to identify and honor its royal subject, reflecting the period’s growing interest in accessible images of European nobility. Corr’s choice of medium highlights the transition from hand-drawn or painted likenesses to mechanically reproducible art, which helped shape public perceptions of figures like Louise Marie during a time of political transformation in Belgium and beyond. As a historical document, the engraving offers insight into both artistic technique and the cultural value placed on royal portraiture in the 1830s.

About the Artist

Erin Corr · 1803–1862

Erin Corr (1803–1862) was an Irish engraver of exceptional skill and dedication, born in Brussels of Irish descent on an unknown date in 1803 and dying on August 10, 1862. His career exemplified the internationalism of 19th-century European art, as he trained in Belgium and France before establishing himself as a professor at the Antwerp Academy, where he influenced the next generation of engraver...