Louise-Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun

Born in Paris in 1755, Vigée Le Brun learned early from her painter father and built an extraordinary career in a world that rarely made room for women artists. She became famous for portraits that feel graceful, lively, and flattering without losing a sense of personality, and she was especially admired for the warmth and elegance she brought to her sitters.

She is closely linked with Queen Marie Antoinette, whom she painted many times, and her success at the French court made her one of the best-known artists of the late 18th century. When the French Revolution began, she left France and spent years working in Italy, Austria, Russia, and elsewhere, turning exile into an international career.

Vigée Le Brun lived until 1842 and left behind not only hundreds of paintings but also memoirs that helped shape her legacy. Today she is remembered as one of the great portraitists of her era, admired for both her technical skill and the way she made her subjects seem vividly alive.