Portrait of Frederick II the Great
1733
Antoine Pesne, the French court painter who brought the fluffy Rococo style to rigid Prussia, captured Frederick the Great here as a fresh-faced 21-year-old Crown Prince. Dressed in a mix of fashionable elegance and heavy military armor, the young prince leans casually on his sword, looking almost bored by the martial display. It’s a fascinating contrast: Frederick famously preferred playing the flute and corresponding with Voltaire to soldiering, yet Pesne paints him as the ideal officer to appease his strict, militaristic father. This portrait freezes a moment before he became the 'Great' warrior king, showing the sensitive artist he truly was underneath the breastplate.
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