François Hubert DROUAIS - circle, PORTRAIT OF MARIA ANTONINA AS A HEBE, PERSONIFICATION OF A JUDGE, PORTRET OF A LADY AS A HEBE, PERSONIFICATION OF A JUDGE, circa 1770.

Oil, duplicated canvas, 78 x 93 cm
François-Hubert Drouais (1727 Paris - 1775 Paris) was a French Rococo painter. Initially trained in the studio of his father, Hubert, he continued his studies with Charles van Loo and Francois Boucher. He specialized in portrait painting. He also created costumed genre scenes. In 1756 he became court painter to Louis XV,and two years later a member of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. He enjoyed a reputation as the most outstanding French portraitist of his time. His works were characterized by delicate colors and typical Rococo intimacy. Also characteristic of his portraits is the decoration of women's outfits with flowers and props - golden vessels.
Due to the characteristically stylized facial features - such as almond-shaped, large expressive eyes, or porcelain doll-like beauty, and the blue-green color scheme, the painting is close to the work of this painter. Examples include a portrait of Louis XV's three daughters Adelaide, Sophie and Victoria as muses, or another portrait of Marie Antoinette's dolphin as Hebe, both at Versailles). Hebe was the goddess of youth and during the time of the gods (the nectar she poured during the Olympic feasts ensured eternal youth).
The shape of her face and blue eyes indicate that the model is an Austrian archduchess, one of the daughters of the
of Empress Maria Theresa and Franz Lorraine, of whom Marie Antoinette herself appears to be the most likely candidate for the model.
Asking price: 35000
Estimate: 45000-50000
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