After joining the Desrochers firm in 1849 as a fan decorator specializing in floral subjects and having married the owner's daughter, Felix Alexandre (1823-1887) took over his father-in-law's business, making his fans the most appreciated and sought after in the world. world. Its products, advertised by the charm of Empress Eugenie, met a large following among illustrious customers crowned, from Queen Victoria of England, to Queen Louise of Holland, to the Queen of Spain and the Empress of Russia Maria Fedorovna. Among the reasons for Alexandre's great success, also recognized at the Universal Expositions in London in 1862 and in Paris in 1867, there was the ability to choose collaborators of the highest level, both for the execution of the frames and for the decoration of the pages, also entrusted to famous artists. This is the case of Eduard de Beaumont (1812-1888), painter, etching artist, lithographer and illustrator, whose signature appears in the illustrated fan with one of those eighteenth-century subject scenes, brought back into vogue by the Empress Eugenie's passion for the Rococo style. .