Mademoiselle Lange as Venus is a 1798 portrait painting by the French artist Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson.[1][2] It depicts the stage actress Anne Françoise Elisabeth Lange in the role of Venus.[3] She is shown looking into a mirror held up by Cupid. The work was commissioned as a gift for Lange's husband Michel-Jean Simons. However, when it was exhibited at the Salon of 1799 at the Louvre in Paris she protested to him it was unflattering as she felt it did not reflect her beauty, demanded he remove it from exhibition and refused to pay the agreed price. Girodet painted and displayed another painting Mademoiselle Lange as Danae, a mocking allegorical painting in which she is shown as Danaë.[4] Today the painting is in the collection of the Museum der bildenden Künste in Leipzig.[5]
| Mademoiselle Lange as Venus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson |
| Year | 1798 |
| Type | Oil on canvas, portrait painting |
| Dimensions | 170 cm × 88 cm (67 in × 35 in) |
| Location | Museum der bildenden Künste, Leipzig |
References
editBibliography
edit- Clark, Alvin L. Mastery & Elegance. Harvard University Art Museums, 1998.
- Levitine, George. Girodet-Trioson: An Iconographical Study. Garland, 1978.
- Massonaud, Dominique . Le nu moderne au salon (1799-1853): revue de presse. ELLUG, 2005.
- Wolf, Norbert. Painting of the Romantic Era. Taschen, 1999.
