Vigée-Lebrun, Élisabeth

Vigée-Lebrun, Élisabeth (ālēzäbĕt` vēzhā`-ləbröN`), 1755–1842, French portrait painter; pupil of her father, the painter Louis Vigée. She was influenced by Greuze. Summoned to Versailles in 1779 to paint Marie Antoinette, she embarked upon a long and successful career. She became painter and friend to the queen; two of her best-known portraits are of Marie Antoinette—one holding a rose and the other with her two children (both: Versailles). At the outbreak of the Revolution, Vigée-Lebrun escaped to Italy and in the following years visited Vienna, Berlin, St. Petersburg, Dresden, and London, finding acclaim and prominent sitters everywhere. Her representations show great elegance and facility of execution. Well known are her portraits of Mme de Staël, C. J. Vernet, and two of herself and her daughter (Louvre). She is also highly esteemed for her work in pastel. Her lively three-volume set of memoirs were published in 1835–37.

Bibliography

See Memoirs of Madame Vigé-Lebrun (tr. 1903, 1927, 1989); biographies by A. Goodden (1998) and G. May (2005); studies by J. Baillio (1983) and M. D. Sheriff (1996).

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Vigée-Lebrun, (Marie-Louise-) Élisabeth

(born April 16, 1755, Paris, France—died March 30, 1842, Paris) French painter. Taught first by her father, a pastel portraitist, she was also advised by Joseph Vernet. In 1779 she was summoned to Versailles to paint Marie-Antoinette, whom she would paint at least 25 more times. At the outbreak of the French Revolution, she left France and traveled abroad, painting portraits of such notables as Lord Byron and Germaine de Staël and playing a leading role in society. Her paintings are notable for their freshness, charm, and sensitivity, and she was one of the most technically fluent portraitists of her era.