Louise-Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun is best known as Marie Antoinette's favorite portrait painter. In this episode, I spoke with Judith Lissauer Cromwell, author of a new biography of Vigée Le Brun.

Louise-Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun first studied art with her father. Sadly, he passed away while Vigée Le Brun was just a child. Her mother helped her to gain access to artworks, to gain inspiration and continue developing her talent. By the time Vigée Le Brun was a young adult, she gained a reputation for painting beautiful portraits of the French aristocracy. Marie Antoinette spent years trying to find a painter who could create a portrait that would satisfy her mother. Vigée Le Brun painted a beautiful portrait and quickly became the queen's favorite artist, but being so closely associated with the queen became perilous during the French Revolution.

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