![]() ![]() There was a day when Vigée Le Burn missed one of their appointments for a sitting due to becoming unwell. She even mentions that on many occasions, the queen and her would sing duets by André Grétry (1741-1813) together. Vigée Le Burn often illustrates the queen in a kind and positive light throughout her memoirs. Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, “Marie Antoinette in Court Dress” (1778), oil on canvas, 107.5” x 76”, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna These vital features of the queen only seemed to add to the imposing air that frightened Vigée Le Burn during this first sitting however, she says how Marie Antoinette spoke to her so kindly that the fear that she had dissipated. “I had no colours to paint such freshness, such delicate tints, which were hers alone, and which I had never seen in any other woman.” 4 Vigée Le Burn details how difficult it had been to render the effect that she had hoped because the queen’s skin was brilliant and transparent. ![]() “She had the best walk of any woman in France, carrying her head erect with a dignity that stamped her queen in the midst of her whole court.” 3 In the end, the most remarkable thing about the queen was her complexion. The first of these portraits began in 1778 when the queen was “.in the heyday of her youth and beauty.” 2 Vigée Le Burn recounts the physical appearance of the queen as being admirably built with her superb arms and her small and perfectly formed hands. Vigée Le Burn would eventually paint more than 30 portraits of the queen and her family, giving her the perception of being the official portraitist of Marie Antoinette. Maire was with several ladies of the court, all of whom had been dressed in white, looking “.young and pretty for that moment.” 1 At that moment, it was unknown to either woman the extent of what their relationship would become. Vigée Le Burn recounts in her memoirs the first time she and the queen met walking in a park. Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, “Self Portrait in a Straw Hat” (after 1782), oil on canvas, 38.5” x 27.7”, National Gallery, London However, it was the ongoing patronage of Marie Antoinette (1755-1793) that cemented Vigée Le Burn amongst their ranks. It was no doubt this proficiency with a brush that drew the attention of notable nobility throughout France. To become an artist of this caliber was no easy feat for anyone, let alone an 18th-century woman. Her early teen years proved to be fruitful for her as she was already painting portraits professionally and was a member of the Académie de Saint-Luc by the age of 19. To keep the company of royals is a privilege very few have ever had, yet, Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842) seemed to do so with ease throughout her life.īorn in 1755 in Paris, France, Vigée Le Burn began her painting career at a young age, with her first instruction from her father, a fellow portraitist. Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun: The Marie Antoinette Years by Georgia Modi ![]()
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