L'Hommage réciproque (Portrait of the artist's wife)

Details

Augustin de Saint-Aubin (Paris 1736-1807)
L'Hommage réciproque (Portrait of the artist's wife)
graphite, blue, red and gray wash
8 ¼ x 6 ½ in. (20.9 x 15.2 cm.)

Provenance

Anonymous sale; Paris, 18 June 1920.
J. Brasseur, Paris, 15 April 1921; Mme. Brasseur de Lille, 1 June 1928.
with Galerie Pardo, Paris, 1981.

Engraved

by Jean-Baptiste Gautier as L’Hommage réciproque (Inventaire du fonds français. Graveurs du XVIIIe siècle, X, Paris, 1968, pp. 12-13, no. 2)

Special notice

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Lot Essay

An allegorical portrait of Louise-Nicole Godeau, the artist's wife, as the muse of Painting, this composition was engraved in reverse under the title L'Hommage réciproque and paired with a portrait of a man as a sculptor (ibid., p. 12, no. 1). Caught in profile, graciously seated, the woman is holding a pencil case, while looking at her beloved portrayed on the canvas.

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