Portrait of Madame Gaignat
Nicolas Lancret·c. 1717
Historical Context
Madame Gaignat, wife of a prominent Parisian collector, appears in this portrait from around 1717 at the Harvard Art Museums. Lancret's portraits, relatively rare in his oeuvre, demonstrate his ability to render individual likeness within the decorative framework of Rococo painting. The Gaignat collection was one of the most important in eighteenth-century Paris, and Lancret's paired portraits of husband and wife document a significant collecting couple.
Technical Analysis
The portrait combines individual characterization with the decorative elegance typical of Lancret's style. His rendering of costume and coiffure places the sitter within the fashion of her era with particular precision. The palette is refined and delicate, with the warm flesh tones complemented by the colors of fashionable dress.
