from the early 1880s. Sargent cherished this candid drawing of his lifelong friend and hung it in the dining room of his Paris apartment. Paul César Helleu was born in
Vannes, Brittany, France. His father, who was a
customs receiver, died when Helleu was in his teens. Despite opposition from his mother, he then went to Paris and studied at
Lycée Chaptal. In 1876, at age 16, he was admitted to the , beginning academic training in art with
Jean-Léon Gérôme. His subjects included the
Duchess of Marlborough, the
Marchesa Casati,
Belle da Costa Greene,
Jeanne de Montagnac,
Louise Chéruit, and
Helena Rubinstein. Helleu made his last trip to New York City in 1920 for an exhibition of his work, but he realized that the Belle Époque was over. He felt out of touch, and shortly after his return to France, he destroyed nearly all of his copper plates and retired to family life. While planning for a new exhibition with
Jean-Louis Forain, he died in 1927 at age 67 of
peritonitis following surgery in Paris. Among many of his friends was
Coco Chanel, who chose beige as her signature colour upon on his advice—the colour of the sand on the beach of
Biarritz in early morning. Both his son
Jean Helleu and his grandson
Jacques Helleu became artistic directors for
Parfums Chanel. An online
Catalogue raisonné providing an overview of his work is under development by L'association Les Amis de Paul-César Helleu. ==Pastel portraits==