

Currently on view at the museum
Room 13 - Level 3
Attributed to Jean-Marc Nattier (1685-1766)
Oil on canvas / H. 73 cm L. 59 cm
The daughter of Stanislas I, King of Poland, Marie Leszczinska married Louise XV in 1725. Nattier's portrait of her met with great acclaim at the 1748 Salon. This painting, which today hangs in the Palace of Versailles, was widely copied. Nattier himself may have painted this medallion, which is taken from the original portrait but only depicts the queen from the waist up. She is sumptuously dressed in a red velvet gown decorated with fur and lace. This luxurious attire reflects her prominent status, without being showy. Nattier particularly emphasised the intimate nature of this portrait, where Marie Leszczinska's gaze seems lost in a melancholy daydream, reflecting the model's relative isolation after she was cast aside by the fickle Louis XV.