François Bernard (c. 1812- )
1870
oil on canvas
| Georges-Alcès François Bernard (c. 1812- ) 1870 oil on canvas |
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| A recent significant
acquisition to the Louisiana State Museum’s
collection are three portraits of the Alcès family, all
completed in 1870 by Francois Bernard. The images are of
Georges-Alcès, his wife Elizabeth Alice Alcès, and his
mother, Darbeline D’Albert. According to Charles
Roussève in The Negro in Louisiana,
Georges-Alcès was a free man of color who lived and
worked in New Orleans before and after the Civil War.
Alcès and his uncle Lucien "Lolo" Mansion were
among the largest cigar manufacturers in New Orleans.
Alcès maintained his business at 185 Royal Street and at
one time employed over two hundred workers. Due to some
business difficulties, the Alcès family moved north in
1875. To date, however, no primary sources that identify
Alcès as a free man of color have been located. The Frenchman François Bernard settled in New Orleans in 1856. He had received his art training with Paul Delaroche in Paris. Like many artists of the time, Bernard spent the winter in New Orleans and traveled as an itinerant portrait painter during the summer. After the advent of the Civil War, Bernard left the city and spent time in France as well as in Mandeville, Louisiana, where he created a series of genre paintings of the local Indians. Returning in 1867, he reestablishes his studio. By the
same artist: |