A superb painter in pastels, she painted Marie-Antoinette, Queen of France, more than thirty times. She survived the revolution and terror to paint Napoleon’s youngest sister as a queen.
Vigée Le Brun
Judith Leyster, Elisabette Sirani, Maria Sibylla Merian, Rosalba Carriera, Angelica Kauffmann, Mary Moser, Anne Vallayer-Coster and Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun – pioneers every one.
Paintings from 1750 on didn’t show ‘Christian’ sibyls, but returned to their classical meaning. Then came Turner’s marvellous narrative landscapes.
More superb pastel paintings from Vigée Le Brun, Eva Gonzalès, Manet, Helleu, and Odilon Redon bring us to the 20th century.
The Eclectic Light Company 