HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)
Autograph inscription signed « Victor Hugo »
N.p.n.d. [print : Spring 1880], 12,7 x 9 cm
« I think with happiness of all the charming things you have done for my dear grandchildren »
Fact sheet
HUGO, Victor (1802-1885)
Autograph inscription signed « Victor Hugo » below an albumen print by Achille Mélandri
N.p.n.d. [print : Spring 1880], 12,7 x 9 cm (print), 24 x 17 cm (montage)
Tiny spots
Superb albumen print of Victor Hugo surrounded by his two grandchildren, celebrating The Art of Being a Grandfather
The print is enriched on the mount with a moving autograph mention signed by Victor Hugo:
« Je songe avec bonheur à tout ce que vous avez fait de charmant pour mes chers petits-enfants, et je vous remercie avec effusion.
Victor Hugo »
After the passing of his eldest son, Charles Hugo, when his children were only three and two years old respectively, Victor Hugo took charge of raising his only grandchildren. They devoted unwavering affection and admiration to him throughout their lives.
An extraordinary figure and close friend of Charles Cros, Achille Mélandri was both a poet and an excellent photographer. Located at 19 rue Clauzel, his studio was one of the essential places in the Parisian artistic world at the end of the 19th century.
A similar proof is held in the collections of Victor Hugo’s house at Hauteville House in Guernsey (inventory no. 3279).
Provenance :
Private collection