151 - Philippe VIGNON (1638–1701), attributed to

Philippe VIGNON (1638–1701), attributed to Presumed portrait of Marie Élisabeth de Lorraine (1664–1748) Oil on canvas, oval format H_40 x W_33 cm Restorations Philippe Vignon was the son of Claude Vignon, a leading figure in French painting during the Grand Siècle. Along with his brother Claude-François Vignon, he trained in his father’s studio before entering the Royal Academy with a portrait of the sculptor Philippe de Buyster and another of the landscape painter Henri Mauperché (now in the collection of the Palace of Versailles). He appears to have subsequently settled in England, as upon his father’s death he was serving as court painter to the King of Great Britain. While the portraits he painted of his fellow artists are imbued with a great deal of naturalism, the paintings commissioned by the aristocracy feature graceful, fresh, and doll-like faces—in short, idealized. Marie-Élisabeth de Lorraine (1664–1748), a member of the House of Guise, was the daughter of François-Marie de Lorraine, a first cousin of Louis XIV, and Anne de Lorraine. Thanks to her birth and her fortune, Marie-Élisabeth de Lorraine held an important position at the French court, where she maintained close relationships with several members of the royal family. Close to the Grand Dauphin, Louis XIV’s eldest son, she also became a lady-in-waiting to the Princess of Conti. In 1691, she married Louis I of Melun, Prince of Épinoy.