Artwork Page for Mme L . . . (Laure Borreau)

Details / Information for Mme L . . . (Laure Borreau)

Mme L . . . (Laure Borreau)

1863
(French, 1819–1877)
Measurements
Framed: 112.4 x 93 x 12.1 cm (44 1/4 x 36 5/8 x 4 3/4 in.); Unframed: 81 x 61.2 cm (31 7/8 x 24 1/8 in.)
Credit Line
Public Domain
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Did You Know?

Courbet once wrote of Laure Borreau, the sitter in this portrait, "I am in love with a splendid lady, the driving force behind my triumph."

Description

Gustave Courbet painted four portraits of Madame Laure Borreau; this is the last and most highly developed. As a Realist, Courbet aimed to represent what he saw in the visible, tangible world. He represented Madame Borreau in a black silk dress embellished with lace and a matching hat. Gold and violet lights of sunset softly illuminate the background. However, the portrait is not idealized. Courbet’s inclusion of her shadowed eyes and full-fleshed neck prompted one critic to write, “I daresay in nature she may be very pretty, but in Courbet’s picture she is nothing less than offensive.”
A vertically oriented oil painting depicts a woman with light skin tone looking out at us with a faint smile. She wears a black hat trailing a sheer veil and a dark dress featuring a patterned lace neckline and white lace cuffs. In her yellow glove, she holds a bouquet of pink and white flowers. Sweeping brushstrokes define a vibrant orange sunset sky on our right, contrasting with a dark mass on our left.

Mme L . . . (Laure Borreau)

1863

Gustave Courbet

(French, 1819–1877)
France, 19th century

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