Portret van Anouilh, Portret van Mouly, Portret van Delaplace en Portret van Armand David before 1897

These four portraits of Anouilh, Mouly, Delaplace, and Armand David offer us a glimpse into the lives of prominent religious figures, meticulously captured by an anonymous artist. Each portrait offers a study in clerical identity, with particular attention paid to the sartorial markers of religious authority like the cut of their clothing and the crosses displayed on their chests. We see this most clearly in the decision to title them with their honorifics: Monseigneur. In terms of today’s culture, that feels like a conscious statement about visibility, representation, and the projection of power. How do these men see themselves, and how do they want to be seen by others? The artist's choice to depict these figures, all men, in positions of authority invites us to reflect on the historical and cultural contexts that have shaped gender roles and religious leadership, and what it might mean to challenge such long standing traditions.