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 Maria Theresa of Austria, important personalities emerged: artistocrats, courtesans and women of letters enlivened the life of the court. On April 14, 1663, for the first time, the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture even opened itself to them by admitting into its ranks the still life painter Catherine Duchemin. Even today, the names of Madame de Montespan, Ninon de Lenclos or Madame de Sévigné resonate in our collective unconscious. The portraits of all these ladies echo the worldliness of the Grand Siècle and immerse us in this gallant society. Although inferior in the hierarchy of genres, the portrait became so popular under the Sun King "that there is no bourgeoisie who is a little coquettish and a little at ease who does not want to have her portrait", Pierre tells us. Richelet in his French Dictionary of 1706. The importance of the commission then gave rise to new stylistic developments: the portrait painters active in the middle of the century (Louis Ferdinand Elle le Père, the Beaubrun cousins) quickly appeared out of fashion and were gradually replaced by a generation of talented young artists who would form the great school of French portraiture of the 17th century. If the names of Mignard or Rigaud are often associated with portraits of the most eminent members of the royal family, other artists concentrate on a less illustrious clientele. Thus, Largillière and François de Troy delivered more intimate representations of these middle-ranking aristocrats and acquired particular notoriety in female portraiture. It is following these two painters that we situate our painting. Represented in a three-quarter front bust, our model wears a daring dress revealing the beginning of her chest. Her so-called “fontange” hairstyle places her in the fashion of the end of the century. This lovely dress is reminiscent of that worn by Princess de Conti in a portrait that François de Troy made of her around 1691 (Toulouse, Musée des Augustins). The discreet smile that our lady sketches and her slightly tilted head gives a certain intimacy to this composition which we can imagine was one day a present for a companion, a lover, a husband.

Our portrait is presented in a provincial frame in carved and gilded wood from the Louis XIV period, a so-called flowered corner model.
Dimensions: 67 x 55 cm – 87 x 73 cm with frame
Sold with invoice and certificate of expertise.

Bibliography:
- AUBERT, Jean, Faces of the Grand Siècle: French portraiture under the reign of Louis Augustins, October 8, 1997 - January 5, 1998), Somogy, 1997. - - KIRCHNER, Thomas, Ups and downs of portraiture in 17th century France, Paris, Fondation maison des sciences de l'homme German Center for Art History , 2022.
- LEROUX, Flavie, VAYSSE, Elodie, Versailles: a feminine castle, Paris, Meeting of National Museums, 2022.