The Life and Art of Louise Ward
Louise Ward, often recognized by her pseudonym Louise Dubréau, was a French painter and Parisian society belle. Born in 1849 in Parma, Italy, she was an Austrian baroness and the daughter of Baron Thomas Ward and Louise Genthner. After her marriage to a French marquis in 1868, she became an accomplished and successful painter in Paris, studying under Pierre Auguste Cot. She frequently signed her works as Louise Dubréau, a name derived from her husband d'Hervey's estate, Château du Bréau.
Her artistic career included several notable exhibitions at the Salon, featuring works such as:
Personal History and Legacy
Ward's personal life was marked by her status as a grande dame in Paris. She was married twice: first in 1868 to the Marquis d'Hervey de Saint-Denys, and in 1896 to Count Jacques de Waru. Her life and presence in Parisian society were so notable that Marcel Proust based the character of the Princesse d’Orvillers on her in his novel series In Search of Lost Time.
Throughout her life, she maintained a close friendship with the painter and duchess Yolande de La Rochefoucauld, who was also a student in the studio of Pierre Auguste Cot. Ward passed away in Paris in 1930 and is buried in the cemetery of the church Saint-Ferréol in Saint-Forget.
