Jeanne Balzac

About the Artwork

Sitter Jeanne de Balzac (1891–1930) was a French actor who visited the US during the early 1920s, attempting unsuccessfully to break into the American film industry. According to some reports, she was related to novelist Honoré de Balzac (1799–1850), a speculation she neither confirmed nor denied.

Inscriptions

signed lower left: Eugene Speicher

Exhibition history

The Twentieth Anniversary Exhibition: The Official Art Exhibit of the Great Lakes Exposition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 26-October 4, 1936). Exhibition of American Painting from 1860 Until Today. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-October 4, 1937). The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941). Retrospective Exhibition of the Work of Eugene Speicher. Buffalo AKG Art Museum, Buffalo, NY (organizer) (September 29-October 26, 1950). 35th Anniversary Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 20-September 30, 1951). Circa 1930. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 12-October 31, 1983).

Quick Overview

Artist: Eugene Speicher (American, 1883–1962)
Date: 1923
Medium: oil on canvas
Dimensions: Unframed: 127.6 x 102.3 cm (50 1/4 x 40 1/4 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: American Painting and Sculpture
Credit line: Hinman B. Hurlbut Collection
Accession no.: 1924.1424

Provenance

purchased from the artist.

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.