Art History Series: Madame Le Brun and Self-Portrait in a Straw Hat (1782)

Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (1755 – 1842) or Madame Le Brun was a French artist, recognized as the most famous female artist of the 18th century. She worked as a royal artist for Marie Antoinette for many years and painted her and her children numerous times. She painted from an early age and in her teenage years was already a famous and professional artist. Her fame grew to such an extent that the authorities confiscated her studio because she did not have an artist's license. As a result, she applied and was accepted to the Académie de Saint-Luc, where she found her works already on display in the academy's salon. She noted the irony of this event in her memoir years later. Her fate is full of twists and turns and during the revolution, her home was attacked with acid poured through the windows. This causes her to flee France just before the King and Queen are deposed. Together with her daughter, they were first sheltered by the Brongniart family, where she painted for a while, then continued their escape and passed through Italy, Austria, Germany and finally to Russia, where she painted the grandchildren of Catherine the Great. She is hailed as "the best mirror in the country". She was inspired by old artists such as Van Dyck, Rubens, Rembrandt, Raphael and Domenichino. Rubens' influence is also evident in this loose copy of his painting Portrait of Susanna Lunden (The Straw Hat) as she makes her hat truly straw.

I saw this painting live at the National Gallery in London, where it has been kept since 1897 and is exhibited alongside Rubens’ painting. The pose in her painting is open, gentle, inviting us to show us what she can create with the brushes and palette she holds. She paints skin with incredible softness, and her love for children and their innocence is clearly visible in her paintings, which you can see in the second painting of Alexandrine Brongniart – the daughter of the family that saves them.

Yours truly,

Julia

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