166 - Jean-Marc NATTIER (1685–1766), from the circle of

Jean-Marc NATTIER (1685–1766), from the circle of Portrait of Marie Adélaïde of France, known as Madame Adélaïde (1732–1800) Oil on canvas H_56 cm x W_46.5 cm Restorations Inscriptions on an old label on the back of the stretcher. Jean-Marc Nattier (1685–1766) was a French painter who established himself as one of the leading portraitists of the reign of Louis XV. The son of portrait painter Marc Nattier and miniaturist Marie Courtois, he received his early artistic training from his father and was influenced by his godfather, the history painter Jean Jouvenet. He studied in particular the works of Peter Paul Rubens and Charles Le Brun, which he copied at the gallery of the Luxembourg Palace. Initially drawn to history painting, he was admitted to the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1718, then gradually specialized in portraiture. He notably developed the allegorical portrait, in which noblewomen are depicted as ancient deities. Beginning in 1742, he received commissions from the royal family and produced several portraits of Louis XV’s daughters, notably Madame Henriette as Flora and Madame Adélaïde as Diana. He also painted Queen Marie Leczinska in 1748. Marie-Adélaïde of France (1732–1800), known as Madame Adélaïde, was the fourth daughter of Louis XV and Marie Leczinska. Raised at the court of Versailles, she remained unmarried and held an important position in her father’s court. She left France during the Revolution and spent her final days in Italy, where she died in Trieste in 1800.