The Prince de Guémenée and Mademoiselle de Soubise Dressed as Grape Harvesters (1745 - 1809 and 1743 - 1807)

Drouais's 1757 portrait of the Prince de Guémenée and Mademoiselle de Soubise dressed as grape harvesters is a pastoral role portrait — a genre beloved by Rococo aristocracy who enjoyed casting themselves as idealized peasants in the spirit of Marie Antoinette's later hameau at Versailles. Both sitters were members of the Rohan family, one of France's greatest noble houses; their disguise as humble harvesters was entirely theatrical, a sophisticated game played within the closed world of the French court. The Waddesdon Manor holding reflects the Rothschild family's systematic acquisition of French eighteenth-century material.

The pastoral costumes provide Drouais with a lighter, more informal palette than his court portraits — rustic straw hats and simple fabrics replacing silk and velvet. The composition is relaxed and playful, appropriate for the theatrical premise. His characteristic flattering treatment of the faces is maintained within the pastoral conceit.