Portrait of a Lady from the Grand Siècle - French school, c. 1700

Oil on canvas. French school, c. 1700.
The entire reign of Louis XIV was marked by the presence of numerous female figures. Alongside Queen Marie-Thérèse of Austria, important personalities emerged: artistocrats, courtesans and women of letters enlivened court life. On April 14, 1663, the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture opened its doors to women for the first time, admitting still-life painter Catherine Duchemin to its ranks. Even today, the names of Madame de Montespan, Ninon de Lenclos and Madame de Sévigné echo in our collective unconscious. The portraits of all these ladies echo the mundanities of the Grand Siècle and plunge us into this gallant society.
Although inferior in the hierarchy of genres, the portrait became so popular under the Sun King "that there is no bourgeoise a little coquettish and a little at ease who doesn't want to have her portrait painted", as Pierre Richelet tells us in his 1706 French Dictionary. The importance of commissions led to new stylistic developments: the portraitists active in the middle of the century (Louis Ferdinand Elle le Père, the Beaubrun cousins) soon appeared outmoded, and were gradually replaced by a generation of talented young artists who formed the great French portrait school of the 17th century. While the names of Mignard and Rigaud are often associated with portraits of the most eminent members of the royal family, other artists concentrated on a less illustrious clientele. Largillière and François de Troy, for example, produced more intimate depictions of these middle-ranking aristocrats, and became particularly renowned for their portraits of women. Our painting follows in the footsteps of these two painters. Depicted in a three-quarter-face bust, our model wears a bold dress revealing the beginning of her breasts. Her "fontange" hairstyle places her in fin-de-siècle fashion. This ravishing toilette is reminiscent of the one worn by the Princesse de Conti in a portrait François de Troy painted of her around 1691 (Toulouse, Musée des Augustins). Our lady's discreet smile and slightly tilted head lend a certain intimacy to this composition, which we can imagine was once a gift for a companion, lover or husband.

Our portrait is presented in a Louis XIV-period gilded and carved wood provincial frame, known as "à coins fleuris".
Dimensions: 67 x 55 cm - 87 x 73 cm with frame
Sold with invoice and certificate of appraisal.

Bibliography :
- AUBERT, Jean, Visages du Grand Siècle?: le portrait français sous le règne de Louis XIV, 1660-1715, (cat. exp., Nantes, Musée des beaux-arts, June 20 - September 15, 1997?; Toulouse, Musée des Augustins, October 8, 1997 - January 5, 1998), Somogy, 1997.
- KIRCHNER, Thomas, Heurs et malheurs du portrait dans la France du XVIIe siècle, Paris, Fondation maison des sciences de l'homme Centre allemand d'histoire de l'art, 2022.
- LEROUX, Flavie, VAYSSE, Elodie, Versailles: un château au féminin, Paris, Réunion des musées nationaux, 2022.