86 - François de Troy,

François de Troy, French 1645-1730- Portrait of a lady as Venus, with Cupid offering his torch; oil on canvas, 132 x 98 cm. Provenance: (formerly) Private Collection, Piedmont. Note: An impressive and richly-conceived allegorical portrait from the final decade of the seventeenth century, the present portrait depicts an unidentified, undoubtedly aristocratic lady in the guise of Venus, goddess of love, accompanied by Cupid offering his flaming torch. Combining the formal grandeur of French court portraiture with the motifs of classical mythology, the painting belongs to a particularly sophisticated tradition in which the sitter's beauty, status, and romantic circumstances were expressed through an elaborate allegorical composition. Indeed, it is in the context of the latter that the present work is particularly suggestive, as, in classical mythology, Cupid's torch represents the kindling of love and the awakening of romantic passion. Here, rather than being subdued or disarmed, Cupid actively solicits Venus, offering his torch to the goddess. It has been suggested that this unusual arrangement may allude to a recent romantic attachment, potentially one about to be formalised through marriage. The portrait may therefore have been commissioned in connection with a betrothal or anticipated wedding, transforming a conventional aristocratic likeness into a sophisticated declaration of love. This interpretation is especially significant when compared with other compositions by de Troy employing Venus and Cupid. Dominique Brême has pointed to two other female portraits by the artist in which Venus disarms Cupid, symbolising a woman exercising complete power over love. These include a work in the Musée des Augustins, Toulouse [2009 4 1], and another example which sold at Sotheby’s, London, on 8 May 2019, lot 62. The present painting offers a different iconographic interpretation, emphasising the arrival or invitation of love rather than its subjugation. De Troy also enjoyed the patronage from the exiled court of James II at Saint-Germain-en-Laye following the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Among the relevant comparisons are his Lady Lucy Herbert as a Vestal Virgin (c.1692–1693), at Powis Castle [NT 1180945], and Lady Mary Herbert as Diana (c.1688) at Coughton Court [NT 135593].