DUSEIGNEUR Raoul (EN)
The Duseigneur Brothers, Antique Dealers in Lyon then Paris
Raoul Duseigneur was born in Lyon on September 28, 1845 (AP, 7D150). He was destined for a career as an engineer and graduated from the École Centrale Lyonnaise in 1863. He then worked in the textile industry, notably in spinning mills, and lived in Spain (Bulletin, 1916, p. 18). It was after this initial career in industry that he became an antique dealer, alongside his brother Georges (1841-1906). The latter had studied at the Beaux-Arts in Lyon and practiced painting and engraving (Bailly-Herzberg J., 1973 and 1985, p. 111). He brought together a circle of scholars and artists at his home in Lyon on rue Malesherbes. The two brothers began their commercial activities in Lyon in the 1880s (Archives du musée national des arts asiatiques - Guimet, box V, letter from Raoul Duseigneur dated October 15, 1882).
In the 1890s, they settled permanently in Paris, where they had already been stocking up for several years (Eudel P., 1887, p. 359). According to Marcel Guérin, the two brothers "then lived in the old buildings of the Abbey adjoining Saint-Germain-des-Prés" (Guérin M., 1932, p. 75). They appear in the Bottin du Commerce from 1896 to 1907, Rive Gauche, first at 3, rue de l’Abbaye (1896-1900), then at 18, rue Séguier (1901-1907). This change in the city of their activity seems to have coincided with the role played by Raoul Duseigneur during the sale of the Spitzer collection in 1893. Gaston Migeon's accountof this subject explains that the Lyon merchant was chosen to produce the catalogue ahead of the sale because of "his education, and his travels", as well as "his stay in Spain". The archives of the sale confirm his status as "curator of the collection" (Cordera P., 2014, p. 116). Their activities cover various fields; Raoul Duseigneur was particularly attached to Italian, Islamic, and Asian art objects.
Raoul Duseigneur, Confidant of the Marquise Arconati-Visconti
The name of Raoul Duseigneur is closely associated with that of the Marquise Arconati-Visconti (1840-1923). A close friend of the famous benefactress of French museums and institutions, he met her during the Spitzer sale (Bailly-Herzberg J., 1973, p. 16). It was also during this auction that the marquise began her collection of works of art (Migeon G., 1924, p. 10). Duseigneur then became her adviser and supplier.
Gaston Migeon, close to the Marquise and her "most intimate, most faithful" friend, recounts the Marquise's extreme grief at the death of Duseigneur on March 13, 1916 (Migeon G., 1924, p. 5-6). She went on to honour his memory with philanthropic actions in his name in the cities of Lyon and Paris. The most famous was her donation of two million francs to the Université de Paris in 1921 to found an "Institut de l'Histoire de l'Art" in memory of Monsieur Raoul Duseigneur. She would later establish the Parisian university as her universal legatee (Recueil, p. 550).
Raoul Duseigneur, Parisian Collectors, and Museums
Raoul Duseigneur had close ties to museums and collectors in the French capital. He made sales to contemporary collectors such as Raymond Koechlin (1860-1931) (Guérin M., 1932, p. 75), Émile Guimet (1836-1918), and Ernest Grandidier (1833-1912) (Chopard L., 2020). He traded with the Musée du Louvre, Musée Guimet, Union centrale des arts décoratifs (UCAD), and Musée de Sèvres. In these institutions we also find several donations in his own name or associated with that of his brother (Musée Guimet, 1904, p. 39-40).
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