Portrait of a Young Lady as Flora

Élisabeth Louise Vigée-Lebrun (1755 - 1842)

Artist/Maker

Artist: Élisabeth Louise Vigée-Lebrun (1755 - 1842)

DatesSigned: 1811

Material / Technique

Oil on canvas

Dimensionsh x w: Mått 72 x 60 cm h x w x d: Ram 95 x 80 x 6 cm

Inventory numberNM 2187

AcqusitionGift 1919 the heirs of Ernst Davidsson

Other titlesTitle (sv): Porträtt av ung dam som Flora Title (en): Portrait of a Young Lady as Flora

DescriptionDescription: A young woman is portrayed here as the goddess Flora. Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun was one of the most successful artists in late 18th-century France, but fled her homeland at the start of the revolution. This work is from the year in which she returned, but stylistically it belongs with her earlier production. It was probably painted as a companion piece to an earlier work, or possibly as a replacement for a lost work.

Motif categoryPortrait

Collection

Paintings (Paintings)

MaterialOil paint, Duk

TechniquePainting

Object category

painting

Keyword

Porträtt

External links

Wikidata: http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q18599195

Additional texteCatalogue text: It became common in the 18th century for women to have their portraits painted in a variety of roles – as a shepherdess or a mythological figure. This woman appears as Flora, the goddess of vegetation and fertility. She wears a costume, inspired by antiquity, that leaves one breast bare. In earlier times, bare breasts could symbolise maternity, but here there is more of an erotic overtone. The portrait was painted by Élisabeth Louise Vigée- Lebrun, one of France’s leading portraitists before, during and after the French Revolution.