Blanche Derousse

A close friend of Doctor Gachet’s, whose pupil she was, Blanche Derousse (1873-1911) was an artist whose brief, little-known career largely focused on the practice of copying. Between 1900 and 1902, she created a series of copies based on paintings by impressionists and Van Gogh belonging to Paul Gachet, who was a painter and engraver himself. Taking advantage of a favorable artistic environment, she produced smaller-format watercolor versions of works that have since become famous. These copies undoubtedly had to do with a book her teacher was planning to write on Vincent Van Gogh, and also testify to the young woman’s admiration for the artist.