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Well now I’ve just seen the Steinlen poster of the cats. I also collect Steinlen. One of my cats was named Theophile after him! 🐈 🐈‍⬛

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Thank you for the good read! Fascinating! In the past I have collected Bella Epoque posters from France. When I head but I gave it to my ex-husband was a fabulous Chat Noir poster. You made my morning allowing me a glimpse inside the real Chat Noir. 😍

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Nov 1, 2023Liked by Stefene Russell

Tres magnifique, Stef.

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Missing 52nd City...

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Oct 29, 2023Liked by Stefene Russell

Fascinating overview, Stef! I knew a little bit about the French-language ones (my research into composers often leads me down these rabbit holes), but I wasn't aware of the phrase "ephemeral bibelots," which I'm already sure I will pilfer someday. The pianist-muse-society doyenne Misia Sert used to publish one of those literary quarterlies. With the first of her many husbands, Thadée Natanson (also her cousin), she published La Revue Blanche, which published the likes of Mallarmé, one of her salon buddies. Ravel adored her and included little coded musical ciphers of her name in his score. There's a prominent motif in La Valse built around the transliteration of her first name (a nickname). She was mostly famous for her great beauty, but she was a fine pianist, who performed in the home after marriage (which was almost always the case for married women in her social class). She was also very discerning and helped promote avant-garde artists who were generally scorned by the bourgeoisie.

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