Adèle d'Affry

Adelaide Nathalie Marie Hedwig Philippine d'Affry, Duchess of Castiglione Colonna, also went under the pseudonym Marcello, (6 July 1836 – 14 July 1879). She was a painter and sculptor, particularly known for her busts, which she exhibited at the Paris Salon.

On 5 April 1856, Adèle d'Affry married Carlo Colonna (1825–1856) in Rome. A month later, he was knighted and received the title of Duke of Castiglione-Altibrandi, converted into Castiglione-Colonna. The marriage was very short as Carlo Colonna died suddenly of typhoid fever in Paris on 18 December 1856. d'Affry was obliged to return to Rome in 1857 to settle a dispute with the Colonna family over her husband's estate. d'Affry took refuge in the convent of the Ladies of the Sacred Heart, Trinidad des-Monts. Her artistic vocation gradually awakened at that time. She took lessons in Imhof's studio, visited many churches and admired the works of antiquity and Michelangelo. In the fall of 1857, she modelled the bust of her late husband. This first sculpture was quickly followed by a self-portrait.

In 1859, d'Affry moved to Paris and rented an apartment from Léon Riesener (1808–1878), a cousin of Eugėne Delacroix, at No. 1 rue Bayard. Pierre Andrieu (1821–1892), an assistant to Riesener and Delacroix, helped to decorate the dining room and workshop in fresco.

D'Affry began to frequent the brilliant society of the Second Empire. She chaperoned her sister Cécile until her marriage, on 29 October, to Baron Moritz von Ottenfels-Gschwind (1820–1907), an Austrian diplomat. Her rank in society led d'Affry to frequent the salons of the Faubourg Saint-Germain, and the shows held by the Comtesse de Circourt. D'Affry built lasting friendships, including with Adolphe Thiers and Auguste Joseph Alphonse Gratry.

Early career D'Affry, inspired by Louis I of Bavaria’s collection of statues, once wrote, “For me [art] will be a profession.” Her artistic journey began in France, where she learned the basics of drawing and painting with the help of portraitist Joseph Auguste Dietrich and painter Joseph Fricero. Later, she moved to Rome, where she studied sculpture under Heinrich Maximilian Imhof. In 1857, she sculpted two important works, a self-portrait bust and a bust of her recently deceased husband, Carlo Colonna, Duke of Castiglione-Aldrovandi, both of which played a significant role in launching her artistic career.

After relocating to Paris in 1859, Marcello continued to refine her skills by copying existing artworks at the Louvre. Although female artists were often discouraged and faced numerous barriers in exhibiting at the Salon, Marcello was a notable exception. She had already established herself as a sculptor and built influential connections within the art world and Second Empire Paris.

Despite being rejected from the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts due to her gender, Marcello remained determined to pursue her artistic education independently. She studied animal drawing at the Natural History Museum under the direction of sculptor Antoine-Louis Barye and modeled from nature, with Auguste Clésinger monitoring her progress. d'Affry and the Empress Eugénie became quite close, as a surviving telegram and d'Affry's journal entries attest.

Selected works Gorgone, 1865, Fribourg, musée d'art et d'histoire Pythia, 1870, Paris, Paris Opera. This work serves as the inspiration for a key feature in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Femme transtévérine, 1874, musée d'Orsay La Marquise de Talenay, 1875, musée d'Orsay