Ritratto di Natalia Zakharovna Kolycheva, nata Hitrovo
Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun
1799
Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, the favorite painter of Marie Antoinette who fled the French Revolution, captured this Russian noblewoman during her years of exile. Natalia Kolycheva sits comfortably with an open book and gold-rimmed spectacles, suggesting a woman of intellect and leisure. The vibrant blue dress and orange shawl create a striking contrast, while the white cloth wrapped snugly around her neck and chin is a fascinating detail—it looks like a bandage for a toothache, but was likely a fashionable high collar or 'fichu' of the era. Vigée Le Brun had a gift for making aristocrats look fresh and lively, and this gentle, direct gaze is a perfect example of her enduring charm.