Augustin Edouart (1789–1861) was one of the most famous silhouette artists of the 19th century. Born in Dunkirk, he left France in 1814, and established himself in London, where he began his career making portraits from hair. In 1825, he began work as a silhouette portraitist, taking full-length likenesses in profile by cutting out black paper with scissors. Edouart spent fifteen years touring England and in 1829 arrived in Edinburgh. He remained there for three years, during which time he produced some 5,000 likenesses. Edouart travelled in the United States in about 1839–49, visiting New York and Boston.
He later returned to France, where he worked on smaller silhouettes. They included one of the most notable writers of this period, Victor Hugo.
His works can be found int he collections of the National Portrait Gallery, London; National Galleries of Scotland; Crawford Art Gallery, Cork; New York Historical Society; Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery; and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston amongst others.
