Portrait of the Comtesse de Beaufort (or is it?)

Louis Michel van Loo, Portrait of the Comtesse de Beaufort. 1760, oil on canvas. The Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College.

"This beautiful idealized portrait has been long known as La Comtesse de Beaufort, though her identity needs to be further investigated." (Old Masters, n.d.) I love this portrait, especially how color reflects off the white satin bodice. It almost looks like the blue sky in a mirror. Look closely at some of the colorful gemstones (detail below).  


The Interrupted Sleep, 1750



Boucher's The Interrupted Sleep caught my eye while passing through the museum...

Happy Fall! Carving the pumpkin

 

Bail, Franck-Antoine, Cutting the Pumpkin. 1910, oil on canvas. Private Collection. Bridgeman Education. 
Happy Fall!

I have spent the past two days looking through the thick white haze that has reached New York from the west coast wildfires. Our environment weighs heavy in my thoughts as often as the struggles of my neighbors who are dealing with the effects of the pandemic. I hope you and your families find yourselves in good health this fall, with fresh air to breathe and a large orange well-shaped pumpkin to carve. Turn off the lights and enjoy peaceful evenings with the windows open and soft yellow serene candlelight. 🕯️🎃🌙

Sending warmest wishes for the start of autumn from my new place!
Lauren

Which style gown do you prefer?


I have run this poll twice now, 2015 and 2016. Each year the results were close...will this year be the same? The poll is now open! Which style gown do you prefer? 
The Robe à l'Anglaise or the Robe à la Française?   
Both styles were worn between the years of 1720 and 1780.  The robe à l'anglaise developed with a fitted back after the style of dress worn in England. The sacque-back of the robe à la Française is reinterpreted from the seventeenth–century gown to incorporate two expansive pleats from the neckline at back.

Marie Antoinette's Boudoir at Fontainebleau

Jules-Marc-Antoine Frappaz, Marie Antoinette's Boudoir. 1876, oil on canvas. Musée national du Château de Fontainebleau.  
Then and now pictures of Marie Antoinette's Boudoir at Fontainebleau! Drawings are from 1876 and the photographs are from the 21st century. Is it to your taste? 

Seven Charges made against Marie Antoinette



Many people use Yahoo Questions and sometimes some pretty funny ones will pop up during searches. I stumbled on my amazingly relevant Yahoo Question of the Day recently, "What was the deal with Marie Antoinette?"

So the asking party really was wondering if she was executed, which I think we all here can safely answer 'yes.' But what were the grounds for her execution?  Let's take a look at her trial....