Portrait of Adrienne Le Couvreur
Medium
Engraving on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Plate: 41.3 × 29.3 cm (16 5/16 × 11 9/16 in.); Sheet: 48.2 × 35.1 cm (19 × 13 7/8 in.)
Classification
engraving
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
12991
Art Historical Context
In the opulent world of 18th-century France, Pierre-Imbert Drev *Portrait of Adrienne Le Couur* (1730) captures the of one of the era's most celebrated actresses. Le Couvreur, ablazing star of the Comédie-Française, dazzled audiences with her tragic and became a cultural icon, admired by Voltaire and the aristocracy. This engraving, produced the year of her mysterious death at age 38, immortalizes her poised beauty and theatrical poise, likely reproducing a contemporary oil portrait to honor her legacy. Drevet, a master engraver from a dynasty of printmakers, exemplifies the Rococo period's r...