Portrait de Madame Sophie

Madame Sophie, daughter of Louis XV, appears in this 1765 portrait at the Musee des Beaux-Arts d"Agen. Sophie was the shyest and most retiring of the king"s daughters, rarely appearing in public and living a quiet life at Versailles. Her portrait by Drouais records a woman whom contemporary accounts describe as timid but intelligent. Drouais was among the most successful portraitists of pre-Revolutionary France, working in the tradition of his father Hubert Drouais and studying under Carle van Loo, Natoire, and Boucher before establishing himself at court.

The royal portrait follows court conventions, with the princess shown in appropriate formal attire. Drouais"s treatment may capture something of Sophie"s reportedly shy character through a gentler, less commanding pose than her more forceful sisters. The handling is characteristically polished, with careful attention to the costume"s rich fabrics.