The Unknown Masterpiece by Honoré de Balzac

It draws on Picasso's Minotauromachy, bringing Picasso's work to life with the characters of Gillette, Poussin and Porbus participating. Sidney Peterson's 1949 avant-garde film Mr Frenhofer and the Minotaur was based on the link between the short story and the work of Picasso.

There he painted his own masterpiece, Guernica. Picasso was fascinated by the text and identified with Frenhofer so much that he moved to the rue des Grands-Augustins in Paris where Balzac located Porbus' studio. In 1927, Ambroise Vollard asked Picasso to illustrate Le Chef-d’œuvre inconnu. Critic Jon Kear argues that Cézanne's own attempts to paint the nude were heavily influenced by Balzac's portrayal of Frenhofer's work. Paul Cézanne strongly identified with Frenhofer, once saying 'Frenhofer, c’est moi' (I am Frenhofer). Influence on artists Ĭommemorative plaque at 7 rue des Grands-Augustins. In the case of Porbus, Balzac used the gallicized version of the surname of Frans Pourbus. Frenhofer is a purely fictional character. Of the three artists depicted in this story, Poussin and Porbus were real artists of the 17th century. Unlike most other stories in La Comédie humaine, this is set in the 17th century, in the year 1612. Their disappointment drives Frenhofer to madness, and he burns his paintings and dies that night. Poussin and Porbus come to admire the painting, but all they can see is part of a foot that has been lost in a swirl of colors. Gillette is so beautiful that Frenhofer is inspired to finish his project quickly. Poussin offers his own lover, Gillette, as a model. He has been working on this future masterpiece that no one has yet seen for ten years. Although Frenhofer has mastered his technique, he admits that he has been unable to find a suitable model for his own masterpiece, which depicts a beautiful courtesan called Catherine Lescault, known as La Belle noiseuse. With some slight touches of the paintbrush, Frenhofer transforms Porbus' painting such that Mary the Egyptian appears to come alive before their very eyes. The painting is of Mary of Egypt, and while Frenhofer sings her praises, he hints that the work seems unfinished. He is accompanied by the old master Frenhofer, who comments expertly on the large tableau that Porbus has just finished. Young Nicolas Poussin, as yet unknown, visits the painter Porbus in his workshop. Le Chef-d’œuvre inconnu is a reflection on art, and has had an important influence on modernist artists. The work is separated into two chapters: Gillette and Catherine Lescault. It was published in Balzac's Études philosophiques in 1837 and was integrated into La Comédie humaine in 1846. It appeared again later in the same year under the title Catherine Lescault, conte fantastique.

It was first published in the newspaper L'Artiste with the title Maître Frenhofer (English: Master Frenhofer) in August 1831. Le Chef-d’œuvre inconnu ( English The Unknown Masterpiece) is a short story by Honoré de Balzac.

The Unknown Masterpiece by Honoré de Balzac