Baron Adolf de Meyer

platinum print, annotated in an unidentified hand in ink and pencil on the reverse, matted, 1913

Collection of Baron Adolf de Meyer

By descent to his son, Ernest, 1946

Bekins, Los Angeles

Private collection, acquired from the above at a sale of unclaimed property

Sotheby Parke Bernet, The Collection of Baron de Meyer, 20 October 1980, Sale 4437, Lot 89

Acquired by the present owner from the above

This early, slightly warm-toned platinum print is in generally excellent condition. The corners are rounded due to wear and the upper right corner is creased. There is a 1/8-inch linear nick at the left bottom edge. There is a barely noticeable pinpoint indentation breaking the emulsion in the lower right quadrant. There is an equally small pinpoint area that appears off-white against the buff tone of the print. The reverse of this print is in generally excellent condition. There is adhesive staining on the reverse. The sitter is identified on the reverse, where it is annotated 'M. Rita de Lydig' and is numbered '3' (circled) in pencil and '221' in ink in unidentified hands.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The photograph offered here, of the fabulous Rita de Acosta Lydig in Venetian-inspired dress, is one of a series of photographs made by Baron de Meyer for Vogue magazine.  The elegance with which Lydig is portrayed matches her reputation as one of the most elegant women of her time.  As Diana Edkins has described her, Lydig's features were 'dark and piquant, with black flashing eyes, full and expressive lips, waist-length shiny black hair that she brushed up in a loose Gibson Girl pompadour, and dead white skin that she enhanced with a dusting of lavender powder.  Her diminuitive figure was exquisite, and with her tiny feet and graceful walk she had the air of a Spanish dancer' (The Power of Style, p. 18).

For this sitting, Lydig chose an opulent housecoat and ornate shoes, described in Vogue in great detail, from the 'old Venetian red velvet for the sable-bordered coat, and the satin for the trousers' to 'the girdle of antique, gold galloon threaded with faded colored silks; the lace vests; and the gold chain from which swings an emerald-set tassel.  The trousers are made of a double strip of satin, seamed over each hip, plaited into the belt, and slashed at the bottom for the feet . . . The feet are slippered with exact reproductions of a pair of medieval shoes now in the Musée Cluny: red velvet, covered with Venetian lace and ornamented with antique paste buckles, is shipped into slippers with square toes, long and narrow, and square, high heels' (Vogue, 15 September 1913).

The strikingly beautiful Rita de Alba de Acosta Lydig (1880 – 1929) was of Spanish and Cuban descent.  Her lineage could be traced to the Dukes of Alba, and her father was a prominent merchant in Havana and New York.  Her divorce from her first husband, William Earl Dodge Stokes, left her with a settlement of nearly two million dollars, a record for the time.  Her second marriage to the wealthy Captain Philip Lydig enabled her to continue her notoriously extravagant and exotic lifestyle, with beautiful houses, a magnificent wardrobe, and legendary entertaining.  She was known as 'the most picturesque woman in America' and was photographed not only by Baron de Meyer, but also Edward Steichen and Gertrude Käsebier, and was painted by Boldini and John Singer Sargent, among others. 

Baron de Meyer's portraits of New York society for such magazines as Vogue and Vanity Fair caused a quiet revolution in the fashion photography of his day.  His photographs of Rita de Acosta Lydig, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (see Lot 115), and others created a signature blend of celebrity, wealth, and style that continues into the twenty-first century. 

The photograph offered here, along with those in Lots 12 and 116, were acquired by the present owner in the legendary de Meyer sale in these rooms in 1980.  For more information, please see Lot 12.