Labille-Guiard self=portrait

 The Palace of Versailles has pre-empted a self portrait by Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, dated 1782, which was offered for sale by the auction house Tajan on 17th December .

Chardin exhibition in Orléans

The exhibition "The Marcille Chardin Family: A Passion from Orléans" runs at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Orléans, from 9th September 2025 to  11th January 2026. 

The Oath of the Horatii

An article by Shane Lewis, published in the The Collector on 27th September, presents an analysis of David's painting The Oath of the Horatii.

Bouchers acquired by the Prado

The Prado Museum in Madrid officially announces its recent purchase of two important early works by Boucher, the Birth of Adonis and the Death of Adonis, painted shortly after Boucher's return from Rome in 1731.

Marie-Antoinette portrait misidentified

According to BBC Oxford, a  portrait of Marie-Antoinette by Jean-Etienne Liotard in the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire in Geneva, is now thought to show her older sister Maria Carolina (article by Ethan Gudge, dated 12.10.2025).

Tourzel snuffbox acquired for Versailles

 The Société des Amis de Versailles confirms its acquisition of the snuffbox containing a portrait of Marie-Antoinette taken by Louis XVI with him on the flight to Varennes.

Versailles acquires Vigée Le Brun portrait

 On 16th June 2025 the Palace of Versailles exercised its right of pre-emption to acquire a pastel portrait of the Count of Provence, by Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, dated 1776.

Portrait of Louis XV on display at Versailles

 The Château de Versailles announces a special display of its recently acquired pastel portrait of Louis XV by Rosalba Carriera. The work, purchased in July 2024, can now be seen in the former apartments of Madame de Maintenon.

Art Institute of Chicago acquires Horvitz collection

Art Institute of Chicago announces the gift of the Horvitz Collection of French Old Master paintings and drawings, the subject of a recent exhibition.

Largillière's "Monument Men" portrait

A portrait  by Nicolas de Largillière, which formerly belonged to Henri Rothschild, was sold by Christie's Paris on 21st November for a record €529,200 - ten times more than the original estimate.

Portrait of King Stanislas

The Académie de Stanislas in Nancy has received the gift of a portrait of King Stanislas Leszcznski, Duke of Lorraine, from a family in Paris.  The painting originally belonged to Henri Hubert (1892-1983), a marine engineer who came from the local area.  

Guérin's Robespierre to be auctioned

On 26th November Millon, Paris, is to auction several notable portrait drawings by Jean-Urbain Guérin. of notable French Revolutionaries.  Included is the original for the well-known engraving of Robespierre made by Freissinger for the collection of 22 deputies to the National Assembly in 1789.

Watteau - to be saved for the nation?

A temporary export ban has been placed on Watteau's Le Rêve de L’Artiste, a painting once owned by Sir Robert Walpole. The sum required to keep it in the UK is £6,075,000 (plus VAT of £215,020!)

The Swing - new insights

 In the The Burlington Magazine for May: Yuriko Jackall, former curator of French paintings at the Wallace Collection outlines new findings on  Fragonard's The swing. The article has been made freely available on the Web: 

Vigée Lebrun self-portrait - auction result

It is confirmed that the 1816 Vigée Lebrun self-portrait in travelling costume from the collection of Joseph Baillio was sold by Sotheby's New York on 31st January for a cool $3,085,000, three times the estimate.

An Unknown Fragonard

A newly discovered portrait by Fragonard depicting a "Young Girl in a Hat",  was sold by Boisgirard-Antonini on 21st December.  It fetched €3.25m, against an estimate of   €400,000 - 600,000.

Philippe Borde on David (new book)

 Philippe Bordes's latest book, Jacques Louis David, la traite négrière et l'esclavage. Son séjour à Nantes, mars-avril 1790  is published on December 7th ( in the"Passerelles" collection, Éditions de la MSH), with full text is available on Open Edition Books.

La Tour pastel on show at the Getty

The J. Paul Getty Museum is currently showcasing Quentin de La Tour's magnificent pastel portrait of Gabriel Bernard de Rieux.  The exhibition Untold Stories of a Monumental Pastel runs at the Getty Center, Los Angeles, from 3rd October 2023 to 20th October 2024.  

Vigée Lebrun self-portrait (auction)

On 31st January Sotheby's New York is to auction  a 1816 self-portrait by Élisabeth Vigée Lebrun, which is anticipated to be going to fetch as much as $1 million.   

New book on Liotard

Liotard: A Portrait of Eighteenth-Century Europe by Christopher Baker, the new editor of The Burlington Magazine, is published on 27th November.