1783 Marie Antoinette holding a rose by Élisabeth-Louise Vigée-Lebrun (Versailles)
This 1783
Vigée-Le Brun work may be the most well-known portrait of Marie-Antoinette. It was
quickly painted in an attempt to calm the controversy caused by the
"muslin portrait." Vigée-Lebrun painted many copies. Elements of the
"muslin portrait" are retained - she wears a hat and holds a rose
while wearing a bertha with two flounces and a skirt with two flounces.
Vigée-Lebrun portrays Marie-Antoinette wearing a
robe a l'Anglaise in 1783 in this, the most well-known, portrait of
her. The robe a l'Anglaise supplanted the robe a la Francaise for all
but court wear by the time this picture was painted. Her dress is the essence
of a French Queen with satin, lovely lace trim, and a cute bow at the center of
her decolletage. The Metropolitan Museum has this definition of a robe a
l'Anglaise, "The robe a l'anglaise was an open robe consisting of a bodice
cut in one piece with an overskirt that was parted in front to reveal a
matching petticoat. Its fitted bodice did not have the center back pleats,
often referred to as the "Watteau back," that typified the equally
popular style of the robe a la Francaise." I have used swellings behind
the sitter to identify robes a la Francaises, the lack of such a swelling plus
an under-skirt matching the over-skirt and bodice identify a dress as
a robe a l'Anglaise. In many open robes, the bodice and over-skirt match,
but the open front reveals a different under-skirt (petticoat). Many early
Victorian-late Beidemeier dresses could be called open robes and robes a
l'Anglaises.
The flounces of her over-skirt join beneath the bow at the center
of her neckline like the sides of a tent. She probably wears a vee waistline,
but that cannot be resolved, even with detail-enhancement. Over all, the
appearance of her dress is simple - but opulent.