Art Destruction: The Burning of Adelaide Labille-Guiard's Masterpiece

The Burning of Adelaide Labille-Guiard's Masterpiece, 2015, Oil on Linen, 70x15 in, Gabriela Gonzalez Dellosso

Adelaide Labille-Guiard (1749-1803) was a prominent painter in France during the tumultuous times of the French Revolution.  She was inducted into the premiere art establishment of the era, The French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1783, making her part of an exclusive group of 4 women who were allowed membership in a male dominated organization.  Her famous “Self Portrait with Two Pupils” hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In this painting she depicts herself as a teacher, which was an important calling in her life. She was a role model and champion for promoting women artists 

Adelaide Labille-Guiard,  Self Portrait with Two Pupils, Madamoiselle Marie-Gabrielle
Capet and Madamoiselle Carreaux de Rosemond, 1785, Oil on Canvas , 83 x 59 1/2 in,
Metropolitan Museum of Art

Her remarkable career shows, how she evolved from miniaturist painter, to portraitist of nobility, to then attempting multiple figure painting, in the grand historical styles of Jacques-Louis David and Neoclassical painter Francois-Andre Vincent.

The age of French Revolution was replete with tragedy and the art of the age reflected that, one of the most famous examples being Jacques-Louis David’s “The Death of Marat”.  “The Burning of Adelaide Labille-Guiard’s Masterpiece” is a scene depicting a tragic event in Adelaide’s life, the destruction, by Revolutionaries, of her painting  “Reception of a Chevalier de Saint Lazare by Monsieur Grand Master of the Order”.    Adelaide’s painting was an ambitious multiple figure commission, her most important up to that point in her life.  This painting was commissioned to honor the Comte de Provence, brother of Louis XVI.  Many years later, the Comte de Provence, would become the future king of France, king Louis the XVIII. The French Revolution would not tolerate art glorifying the monarchy, so they issued orders to seize royal paintings and burn them.  Adelaide had spent two and a half years painting her “magnum opus”, when it became a casualty of the French Revolution and went up in flames in 1793.  She was devastated and never attempted anything as ambitious again.  If the painting would have survived, it would have been one of the 
largest and most impressive paintings, depicting a future king, ever painted by a historical female artist.  You can identify Adelaide Labille-Guiard in the light blue dress. She is being held up in the arms of her pupil and lifelong friend, Marie-Gabrielle Capet in the olive-brown dress, (the same clothing that they were depicted in by Adelaide Labille-Guiard in her famous painting "Self-Portrait with Two Pupils").

Marie-Therese Reboul

Marie-Therese Reboul (1728-1805),  along with Adelaide Labille-Guiard, Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun  and Anne Valleyer-Coster, Marie-Therese Reboul was part of an exclusive group of women who shared the privilege of being called an "Academician" during the mid 1780's.

"Portrait of Marie-Therese Reboul, 1757,by Alexander Roslin

Marie Therese-Reboul was admitted into The French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1757.  She exhibited in its Royal Salon from 1757-1767.  Her artistic training was achieved under Madeleine Basseport, who was a botanical illustrator.  She also studied with Royal Academician Joseph Marie-Vien, whom she eventually married.  She specialized in painting still lives and flowers.  She also etched plates for books on natural history.  Her important paintings include: that of a hen with chicks, a golden pheasant from China, a brooding pigeon and a bird of prey following a butterfly.  Catherine the II of Russia collected her work and several of her paintings are in the collection of the Hermitage 
Museum.  The only images I found of her work  can be seen in the following link:
http://www.artnet.com/artists/marie-thérèse-
reboul-vien/past-auction-results
There is not much more information on Marie-Therese Reboul.  From bits and pieces of information that I did find, she seems to have had a very generous character.  She donated all of her jewelry to France in 1789.

Anne Vallayer-Coster: The Greatest Still-Life Painter Who Ever Lived

Anne Vallayer-Coster is certainly a first class still-life painter.  She was a contemporary of Jean- Baptiste-Simeon Chardin, who recognized her exceptional talent. Her great skills were endorsed by  Marie Antoinette officially in 1780, when she received the title of "Painter to the Queen".  Her celebrity generated strong interest from many notable collectors and critics. 

"The Attributes of Painting and Sculpture" by Anne Vallayer Coster, 1769

Anne Vallayer-Coster was the daughter of a goldsmith, who was a master at the Gobelins Manufactory.  His name appears in the register of gifts from the king to important officials, where he was acknowledged as the person responsible for decorations on gold enamel boxes.
Anne Vallayer-Coster's art training is somewhat of a debate and conclusions are made by her associations with certain people. It is very likely that she studied with Joseph Vernet, well known for his marine paintings.   She owned 27 works by him and he owned works by her. Madeleine Basseport is another artist, that is presumed a teacher of Anne Vallayer-Coster because of stylistic similarities. To learn more about Anne Vallayer-Coster's possible and likely mentor, Madeleine Basseport, visit:  http://broadstrokes.org/2012/05/04/royalists-to-romantics-spotlight-on-madeleine-francoise-basseporte/

Anne Vallayer-Coster was admitted into the French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1770 in a single reception, with notable Academicians, Jean-Baptiste-Simeon Chardin, Joseph Marie-Vien (director of the Academy), Joseph Vernet, Alexandre Roslin and Hubert Robert serving as witnesses.  In 1771 she exhibited several works in the Royal Salon.  Her work received high praise, even from the great philosopher and critic, Diderot, who stated that "If all new members made a showing like Mademoiselle Vallayer's, and sustained the same high level of quality there, the Salon would look very different".1   The following two paintings were exhibited in the Salon of 1771:

"The Attributes of Music" by Anne Vallayer Coster, 1770, Louvre Museum, Paris

"The White Soup Tureen" by AnneVallayer-Coster, 1771, Private Collection, Paris

In a letter dated April 9, 1779 (with the Queen's support and endorsement) Anne Vallayer was awarded lodging at the Louvre Palace.  She was the only woman artist to have been granted this privilege.  Adelaide Labille-Guiard was denied this privilege many times, "because of her sex" the real reason being that she was a teacher to many young females and this would cause a great distraction to the male art students in the Galeries du Louvre.

Anne Vallayer Coster did venture into portraiture, but encountered scathing reviews of her work in the 1785 Salon, where she was compared to portraitists, Adelaide Labille-Guiard and Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun.  The result was Anne Vallayer-Coster decided to focus on still-life painting.  Here is an example of one of Anne Vallayer's portraits:

"Joseph-Charles Roettiers" by Anne Vallayer Coster, 1777, Chateau de Versailles

Flower paintings were one of Coster's great strengths.  She was praised for their exquisite richness.  If you look at them closely you can see that there are technical similarities between Vallayer Coster's paintings and those of one of the greatest flower painters of all time, Henri Fantin- Latour.

The following are examples of Anne Vallayer-Coster Flower paintings:

"Vase of Flowers with Bust of Flora" by Anne Vallayer Coster, 1774, photography www.bluffton.edu.com

"Roses in a Glass and Grapes, by Anne Vallayer-Coster, 1804, Private Collection

"Flowers in a Crystal Vase" by Anne Vallayer-Coster, 1789, Private Collection

Here is a painting by Henri Fantin Latour:

"Vase of Peonies" by Henri Fantin-Latour, 1881. Honolulu Academy of Arts

Anne Vallayer-Coster's long list of important collectors included:

• Queen Marie Antoinette
• Louis-Gabriel de Veri-Raionard--Marquis de Veri 
• Joseph Marie Terray -Controller-General of Finances during the reign of King Louis XV in France
• The financier Beaujon - one of the richest men in France during the reign of King Louis the XV, who lent millions to the government during the Seven Years' War
• The prince de Conti

In 1781 she marries a powerful lawyer and member of the parliament, J.P. Silvestre Coster, their wedding ceremony is held at Versailles and their marriage contract is signed by Queen Marie Antoinette herself.  When the French Revolution began in 1789 she did not exhibit in the Salon.  She lost her greatest patron when Queen Marie Antoinette was executed in 1793. Her last painting exhibited at the 1817 Salon was"Table with Lobster Fruit and Game".  Her following 1781 painting has a similar theme, you can see how beautifully she depicted the lobster :

"Still Life with Lobster" by Anne Vallayer-Coster, 1781 Toledo Museum of Art, purchased with funds from the Libby Endowment

For more of Anne Vallayer-Coster's work visit:
http://www.pinterest.com/palettesandpear/anne-vallayer-coster/

An excellent Monograph on Anne Vallayer-Coster:
"Anne Vallayer-Coster Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette" , Eik Kahng and Marianne Roland Michel


1.  "Anne Vallayer-Coster Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette" , Eik Kahng and Marianne Roland Michel, pg 17,  note #41 taken from: Seznec and Adhemar , 1957-1967, 4:202

The Finest Rivals

"Self Portrait"(Oil) 1800, by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, Collection of the Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg, Russia

"Self-Portrait"( Pastel) 1782 by Adelaide Labille -Guiard, Private collection

Two painters exhibit side by side in Paris's most prestigious painting Salons.  Who was better, who was the most talented?  A question that would come to mind when comparing Adelaide Labille-Guiard and Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun.  In their day, they were part of the "elite" four, along with two other women, Marie-Therese Reboul and Anne Vallayer-Coster. Together they were the only four females admitted into the male dominated French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. 

Labille-Guiard and Vigee Le Brun were admitted into the French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture on the same day, May 31, 1783.  It is only natural that the two figurative artists would be called rivals.  Some say their "rivalry" was invented by critics who loved to compare the two women in every aspect, including their looks.  In Laura Auricchio's monograph "Adelaide Labille-Guiard, Artist In The Age Of Revolution" she discusses an instance where women of the Royal Academy's Salon were compared as if they were participating in a beauty pageant "Mesdames Vallayer and Guiard also display their graces at the Salon; but Paris awards the apple to Madame Le Brun".  1

So since, I have seen the mention of rivalry many times when reading about Labille-Guiard or Vigee Le Brun, I thought it would be interesting to explore this topic. 

Self-portraits at different stages of their lives reveal clear differences in the way they each presented themself to the public. The following are two self-portraits painted in their twenties.  You can clearly see that Adelaide Labille-Guiard had a predilection for more elaborate style and dress as compared to Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun's preference for simpler dresses (as you can see in many of Le Brun's self-portraits).

"Self-Portrait (age 26) by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, Kimbell Art Museum Fort Worth, Texas

"Self-Portrait" (age 25) Watercolor on Ivory, 4 1/16 in x 3 5/16 in, by Adelaide Labille- Guiard, Foundation Miniaturesammlung Tansey, Celle, Germany

Labille-Guiard shows off her brilliant dress, complete with fancy hat, silk and ribbons in her famous "Self-Portrait with Two Pupils" at the age of 36. Vigee Le Brun on the other hand, prefers a  simple dark dress with a red sash in her portrait at the age of 35.

"Self-Portrait with Two Pupils" (age 36) by Adelaide Labille-Guiard

"Self-Portrait" (age 35) by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy

Comparison of their personalities reveals that they were both tenacious women, both passionate about their art and found the way to create in a tough, chaotic world, a world of Revolution. They were extraordinary women.  

Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun dedicated herself only to painting, she had as much as three sittings per day.  In the evening she would sometimes have elaborate soirees, where she would invite poets, musicians, aristocrats and painters.  She was very social in this respect.  Her husband, Jean Baptiste Pierre Le Brun, was an art dealer and critic, who specialized in old master paintings.  He also painted on occasion.  Here is a self-portrait by him.

"Self-Portrait" by Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Le Brun, Wildenstein Institute, Paris

Because he was an art connoisseur Jean-Baptiste-Pierre had personal ties with Jacques-Louis David, the titan-dictator of French art during the Revolution.  It is not surprising that Jean-Baptiste-Pierre was appointed to serve on a committee whose job was to select "worthy" French works of art to be saved from destruction during the Terror.  Obviously, Jean Baptiste Pierre Le Brun had the power to save many of Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun's paintings and preserved them from elimination.  

Adelaide Labille-Guiard's great love was, Francois- Andre Vincent, who taught her oil painting (and helped her make the transition from miniaturist to large scale oil painting)  He was the son of her miniaturist teacher, Francois-Elie Vincent, who was her instructor during her adolescence.  

"Francois-Andre Vincent" 1795, by Adelaide Labille-Guiard, Louvre Museum, Paris

Francois-Andre Vincent was a leader in the neoclassical movement, until his rival, Jacques-Louis David took over the French art scene.  It is interesting to note that this is a key difference between Guiard and Le Brun; Le Brun had a more favorable relationship with Jacques-Louis David  than Labille-Guiard.  Could this be part of the reason that Vigee Le Brun to this day is more popular in France than Labille-Guiard?  If you visit Paris you will see Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun's paintings on display in many museums, Adelaide Labille-Guiard paintings are not as easy to find.  

I have already mentioned that Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun spent most of her time painting, she did teach (upon the urging of her husband to earn extra income) but she did not love it.  Adelaide Labille-Guiard was passionate about her teaching. She depicted herself in her self-portrait as a teacher and it turned out to be her masterpiece.  She fought for the advancement of women artists in a hard time.  Much of her time was spent campaigning to change the laws limiting the number of women allowed to exhibit their work in the all important Salon of the French Royal Academy.  She succeeded and in 1791 a motion passed where an unspecified number of women were allowed to exhibit in the Royal Salon. Labille-Guiard was a great role model for women, who via her teaching and willingness to push the limits of the French art establishment made a difference.

Politics was another area the two women differed greatly in.  In 1789, when the Revolution started to bare its claws in Paris, Vigee Le Brun fled to Italy,Vienna and Russia.  Labille-Guiard remained behind, absorbed and even embraced the new regime that came into power in Paris.  Labille-Guiard painted fourteen members of the National Assembly, including Maximilien Robespierre, the ultimate revolutionary.  Vigee Le Brun's travel further helped spread her fame around the world, while Labille-Guiard always remained in France, surrounded by a close knit group of people.

Their painting styles reveal distinctions that clearly identify each artist.  As seen below 
in Adelaide Labille-Guiard's painting "Portrait of a Woman"  her characteristic trademark style, is rich in clarity, detail and usually demure color.

Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun favors a softer more romanticized style, in the vein of  Roccoco artist, Francois Boucher. 

"Portrait of a Woman" 1781 by Adelaide Labille Guiard, Musee de Beaux-Arts, Quimper, France

"The Daughter's Portrait" 1792, by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun,  Galleria nazionale di Parma, Italy

It is a matter of personal taste in deciding who gets the prize in this age old rivalry.  One thing is for sure, they both qualify as winners in my book.

1 Les Pientres Volants, ou Dialogue entre in francois et un anglois sur les Tableaux exposes au Sallon
du Louvre en 1783,  Collection Deloynes vol. 13. no 297, pg. 13  ------footnote of a quote Laura Auricchio used on pg. 35 in her monograph "Adelaide Labille-Guiard "Artist In The Age of Revolution"

Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun: Prodigy, Paint And Princesses

Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun's work can be found in many museums all over the world, reflecting the fact that Le Brun was extremely prolific and well traveled.  Her body of work consists of approximately 800 paintings.  Like Adelaide Labille-Guiard( the subject of several of my previous blog posts) Le Brun became an important and distinguished artist in France During the latter half of the 18th century. She became Marie Antoinette's official portraitist by the time she was 25 years old- ultimately painting more than 20 portraits of the Queen.

"Marie Antoinette", 1783,  by Elisabeth Vigee Le Burn

"Marie Antoinette", 1786, by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun

Le Brun was born in Paris in 1755.  Her father, Louis Vigee, was a pastel portraitist, who taught at the Academie de Saint-Luc in Paris.  Elisabeth learned much about art from him at an early age. Unfortunately, he died in 1767 due to a wound he acquired, while accidentally swallowing a fishbone. It was in this year, at the age of 12, that Elisabeth took over her father's studio.  The young girl was noticed by the painter Greuze (famous for his rustic group scenes) and remained a good friend throughout Vigee Le Brun's life. Young Elisabeth received encouragement and guidance from Greuze and other notable painters of the era. Her early talent and reputation attracted enough portrait commissions to support her family by the time she was 15.  
In 1776 Vigee Le Brun married the art dealer Jean Baptiste Pierre Le Brun, a great nephew of Charles Le Brun, who was appointed the Director of the French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1663 and had been declared by Louis the XIV the "greatest French painter of all time".  Jean Baptiste Pierre Le Brun misled Elisabeth into believing that he was wealthy, when in reality he did not even own the house he lived in.  However, he was well connected in the French Art world and specialized in Old Master paintings.  She soon realized that Jean Baptiste was a handful, he was a womanizer, gambler and a "big spender".  To help "finance" his lavish tastes, he encouraged Elisabeth to take on pupils for additional income.  Teaching, however was not her passion.  One of Elisabeth Vigee's notable pupils was Marie Guilhelmine Benoist (also known as Marie Guilhelmine de Laville Laroux).  She received several commissions from Napoleon Bonaparte and was awarded a gold medal and stipend from the Napoleonic regime.

 One of Vigee Le Brun's pupils, Marie Guilhemine Benoist  (1768-1826):

"Self Portrait", 1790, by Marie Guilhelmine Benoist , Sandiego Museum of Art

"Portrait of A Lady", 1799, by Marie Guilhelmine Benoist

"Portrait of Elisa Bonaparte", 1805, by Marie Guilhelmine Benoist

In 1780 Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun's marriage produced one child- Jeanne-Julie Louise, referred to as "Julie".  Julie was the subject in many of Elisabeth's paintings.  Maternity or "Madonna and Child" was a topic Vigee Lebrun used repeatedly in her paintings.

"Self Portrait with Daughter Julie", 1786, by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, Collection of the Louvre

"The Bather (Julie Le Brun)", 1792, by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun

In 1789 the French Revolution and its hostility towards the monarchy, forced Vigee Lebrun-painter of the royalty-- to flee to Italy and relocate there.  Her husband stayed behind to protect his art collection.  His personal ties with Jacques-Louis David saved him from persecution (David was a powerful figure in the French art scene).  Elisabeth's stay in Italy lasted from 1789 to 1792.  Among the cities she visited were Rome, Florence, Naples and Milan.  She enjoyed and enriched her artistic senses by visiting the great masterpieces of Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo Da Vinci and many others found in Italian museums. 
Highlights of her stay in Italy:
.  Invitation to submit a self-portrait for the collection of the Grand Ducal Gallery in the Uffizi in Florence

"Self-Portrait", 1790 by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, Gallery of the Uffizi, Florence

.  In 1790 was elected a member of the Roman Accademia di San Luca
.  Her many notable portrait commissions include:  Countess Skavronsky and Lady Hamilton ( Lady Hamilton was the subject of a movie starring Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier), Queen Maria Carolina of Naples and Composer Giovanni Paisiello.
. She met with famous Swiss born painter, Angelica Kauffman, who had much in common with her.

After her stay in Italy, Vigee Le Brun traveled and lived in Vienna for two and a half years.  She received a warm welcome there, Maria Theresa of Austria (1717-1780) was Marie Antoinette's mother and patron of the arts.  While in Austria, she received many portrait commissions from the aristocracy.  Her paintings develop a romantic use of landscape backgrounds.
In 1795 Vigee Le Brun decided it was time to travel to Russia. She arrived in St. Petersburg in the summer and thought that it was a beautiful city. Once again, because of her fame as Marie Antoinette's official portraitist, she was summoned by Empress "Catherine the Great". 

Highlights of her stay in Russia:

 . She developed a friendship with the Empress Catherine the Great and was commissioned to paint her two granddaughters, Alexandra and Elena Pavlovna.

"Portrait of Duchess Alexandra and Elena Pavlovna"1795-97 Elisabeth Vigee Lebrun

Elisabeth was about to start painting "Catherine the Great's" portrait, but she died suddenly.

. Among other interesting portrait commissions while in Russia, was that of Princess Catherine Feodorovna Dolgorouky, the host of a very fashionable salon.  She paid Vigee Le-Brun for the portrait, with a carriage and a diamond  bracelet inscribed with the phrase "Adorn her who adorns her century".
. Vigee Le Brun was made an honorary free associate of the Imperial Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg.
 She finally returns to Paris in 1802, where she was greeted by friends and family who survived the Guillotine. By this time the  Napoleonic regime was in power. Vigee Lebrun's France was gone and melancholy set in, so Elisabeth decided once more to make a journey and she left to England.  
Highlights while in England:
. She paints a portrait of the Prince of Wales ( the future King known as "George IV")
. Meets the painter Sir Joshua Reynolds, who greatly admired her work.

Vigee Le-Brun finally returns to France in 1805 and paints a portrait of Napoleon's Sister, Caroline Murat.

"Portrait of Napoleon's sister, Caroline Murat", 1807, by Elizabeth Vigee Le Brun

Vigee Le Brun settled in France, but still traveled to Switzerland and at the age of 65 traveled to Bordeaux and the Loire Valley.  After the death of her daughter and brother, she became close to her two nieces and found great joy in them.  She also wrote her famous autobiography "Souvenirs".
Here is a link to more of her work:
Paintings by Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun

**Recommended book and resource: "Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun- The Odyssey of an Artist in an Age of Revolution" by Gita May