Elisabeth Louise Vige Le Brun

During the reign of Queen Marie Antoinette, Vige Le Brun painted many portraits of herself, her children, and other members of the nobility. She also used a straw hat to create a self-portrait. These are some of her best works and reintroduced her into the canon of Western art history.

Élisabeth-louise Vigée Le Brun

Portrait of Marie Antoinette with her Children

Throughout the late 18th century, Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun was the most celebrated and influential female painter in France. She created a witty style that combined Rococo and Neoclassical genres. Her art reflects a time of blissful ignorance and indifference to the events surrounding the French Revolution.

Vigee Le Brun was the first woman to attain the rank of painter to the King of France. She was also the only female painter in the French Royal household to receive an official commission for a portrait of Marie Antoinette. The painting was an effort to restore the queen’s reputation. It was painted in a way that would make the queen seem as though she was a virtuous and caring mother.

The portrait of Marie Antoinette with her children was done as propaganda to counter criticism of the Queen. It is believed that the painter was influenced by depictions of the Holy Family.

The robe en chemise was removed from the Salon in 1783, after being deemed scandalous. The dress was a loose muslin with puffy elbow-length sleeves and frills along the neckline. The hat was a fabric hat with three feathers. The dress is trimmed with pearl bracelets and flowers. The hair is fresh and styled. The portrait shows a very youthful and beautiful Marie Antoinette.

During her long career, VigA(c)e Le Brun received many portrait commissions. Her subjects included Napoleon I, Lord Byron, and Catherine the Great’s granddaughters. She also sent her work to the Salons in Paris and London.

Elisabeth Louise Vigee-Lebrun died in Paris in 1842. Her ancestors were distant relatives of Charles Le Brun, the father of Queen Marie Antoinette. She was a witty and independent woman. Her paintings of royalty and nobility were a success, and she became a well-known portraitist. In 1982, the Kimbell Art Museum held an exhibition dedicated to her.

The French royalist was born in Paris, the daughter of a modest family. She was encouraged by her mother to pursue an artistic career. When she was young, she admired the works of Old Masters, including Rubens. The family traveled to Luxembourg Palace where she was exposed to Rubens’ work.

Self-portrait in a straw hat

During her life, Louise A%0lisabeth Vige Le Brun was a very successful painter. Her works were very popular and she was often given portrait commissions. In 1787, she caused a minor public scandal by painting a self-portrait in which she wore a straw hat. The work was inspired by Rubens’s portrait of Susanna Fourment.

VigA(c)e Le Brun was a neoclassical painter who experimented with several thin layers of paint. She also experimented with using warmer colors. She was influenced by her trip to the Netherlands in 1781. She also became a member of the AcadA(c)mie Royale in 1783. She studied under Gabriel Briard and P. Davesne. She was also encouraged by Joseph Vernet.

When she was young, she was exposed to the Old Masters art by her mother. She was eventually given admission to the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. She painted 30 portraits of Marie Antoinette.

She became a very successful painter and she travelled extensively in Europe. Her daughter Julie was born in 1780. She married an art dealer, Jean-Baptiste Le Brun. They had two sons. One lives in Paris and the other in Louveciennes. However, they never reunited. During the French Revolution, many of their friends were killed.

After the French Revolution, VigA(c)e Le Brun moved to London. She continued to paint and hold popular salons. She also received invitations to Prague and Dresden. She spent five months in Moscow in 1800. She then settled back in France in 1805. Her paintings included romantic landscapes. She sent her works to the Salons of 1817 and 1824. She also held an honorary associateship in the St. Petersburg Academy in 1800.

She later returned to France and died in Paris in 1842. She was recognized as the most important female painter of the 18th century. Her son, Louis VigA(c)e Le Brun, was also a very successful portraitist. He was also a fan of his father’s work.

Although she was a successful painter, VigA(c)e Le Brun was rejected by several artists because of her gender. Her husband stayed behind to befriend Revolutionaries.

Portraits of other nobility

During the 18th century, Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun became the most sought after portrait painter. Her paintings of European royalty are displayed in many world famous museums. She is best known for her portraits of Marie Antoinette. Throughout her lifetime, she painted more than 200 portraits.

Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun’s portraits are distinguished by her use of unusual color combinations. She also had a knack for innovative poses. She painted many self-portraits and mythological scenes. She had a gift for making women look elegant, but with a hint of roughness.

She was a member of the Academie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, France’s most prestigious professional association for artists. Her work is well-known for its emotional tenor and unusual color combinations.

When she was young, Vigee-Le Brun spent a great deal of time studying art in Paris galleries. She also had informal instruction from landscape painter Joseph Vernet. Her father, who was a pastel portrait artist, recognized her talent. He taught her the rudiments of painting.

When she was twelve years old, her father died. Her mother married a wealthy jeweler named Jacques-Francois Le Sevre. They moved to the rue Saint-Honore, close to the Palais Royal, in 1768. They had three children. During the Revolution, Vigee-Le Brun’s citizenship was revoked. However, she was allowed to return to Paris.

Her husband was forced to divorce her on the grounds of desertion. Afterwards, she settled in the suburbs of Paris. She lived a peripatetic life as an artist. She painted portraits of notable people and was an active supporter of Marie-Antoinette.

Vigee-Le Brun also painted portraits of other royal families in Europe. Her portraits were commissioned by the nobility. Her style was based on the works of Flemish Masters. She often used loose brushwork and bright colors. Her subjects were often inserted into landscapes. Her portraits were well-received and exhibited in the Paris salons.

After the Revolution, Vigee-Le Brun continued to paint. Her portraits of Marie Antoinette were removed from the salon. She continued her work in exile. Her portraits of other nobility were popular with the French aristocracy.

Reintroduction into the canon of Western art history

During the mid-to-late eighteenth century, portraits of women were considered fashionable. A number of artists created these pictures. Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun was one of the most successful. Her work can be seen in major museums around the world.

Her style is a blend of Neoclassical and bare-flesh aesthetics. Her works include self-portraits, portraits of women, landscapes, and portraits of men. Her paintings have been featured in two major retrospectives at The Modern in Fort Worth, Texas and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

While many portraits of women from the 18th century are painted from the side or back, Vigee Le Brun’s works are more intimate. Her paintings of women have softened contours and are often misted. She is known for her engaging self-portraits.

During her lifetime, she met many famous painters and was given access to their works. She also had connections to upper French society. She was invited to the Court of Comte de Provence and the Court of Louis XVI. She was also invited to the Court of Naples.

Elisabeth Vigee LeBrun was born in 1755. She learned to paint from her father. She was also influenced by the Old Masters. She became an expert painter. She received her first commission from the Court of Comte de Provence. In 1778, she painted a portrait of Queen Marie Antoinette.

The queen later died and was executed. However, she wanted to hang on to the prerogatives of being queen. She became a great patron of the arts. The queen commissioned Vigee-LeBrun to paint a full-length portrait of herself. The painting is majestic and powerful. It shows a mother and daughter sharing a gaze. The sitters, a mother and her daughter, are both named “Brunette.”

The artist exhibited her works at the Palais Royale and the Grand Palais in Paris. She also traveled to England and Russia. Her portraits of women are especially notable for their informality. Her paintings of men are powerful and focus mental energy.

Elisabeth Vigee-LeBrun was the last mistress of King Louis XV. She was married to Jean-Baptiste LeBrun. She was the mother of her daughter Julie, nicknamed “Brunette” by her mother. The family lived in Louveciennes, France.