“Her kohl-rimmed eyes matched in sparkle and clarity the myriads of crystal balls and glass bibelots which strewed the room.” Lee’s description of Colette cultivates an image of the author as a character in a fairytale. The abusive nature of her first marriage to Henry Gauthier-Villars (who went by the pen name ‘Willy’) is particularly reminiscent of these stories: . “She left a comfortable petted life with her family for irregular and precarious living with a man who was irresponsible and perverted. Her life was lonesomeness, misery, neglect and ill health; and like the books make out the lot of a cad’s wife. [...] He was an “author” vicariously; a sort of impresario or Svengali and a cheat. [...]Colette’s first try, “Claudine à l’ecole,” embroidered memories of her schooldays, disappointed him and he pigeon-holed it in disgust. A year later he gave it to a publisher who swooped with joy, and M. Willy had the further personal frustration of not having recognized the pearl he had found. However, by the nursery method of locking her in her room until she completed a quota of pages, he sweated Colette into writing three more “Claudines.”.” . Despite the success (and scandal) of the Claudine novels, Colette reaped none of the financial rewards and once her divorce from Gauthier-Villars was finalised in 1910 she took to the stage to perform sketches adapted from her novels. . Prints of this image are available to purchase on our website www.leemiller.co.uk (link in bio). Discover more about the people Lee Miller encountered by subscribing to our LoveLee membership. Visit www/patreon.com/leemillerarchives to join! . . . Image: Colette, Paris, France 1944 by Lee Miller © Lee Miller Archives, England 2022. All rights reserved. www.leemiller.co.uk . . . . . #leemiller #leemillerarchives #femalephotographer #blackandwhite #blackandwhitephotography #noiretblanc #noiretblancphotographe #fotographia #fotografo #fotographie