The much talked about the ´hen picture´ was added on the initiative of carl gustaf tessin in connection with a court party in 1747. The painting was shown for the first time as one of six paintings, performed at a meeting within a society, called the academy of the little masters. All the six court ladies pictured were members of this academy at the crown prince couple's court and gustaf lundberg's pastel portrait for the planned beauty gallery on drottningholm served as models for their heads. The fabulous presentation alluded to an incident in the summer of the above-mentioned year, when tessin is said to have seen the court ladies "in a sufficiently natural state, while they were to dress". This was an episode that obviously attracted tessin's imagination on several levels. He was a famous sneak peek and has himself told how he managed to open a bathroom door secretly to see a glimpse of the beautiful princess of rohan. To the ´hen picture´ he added a couple of gallant verses in which he likened the court ladies to hens and himself, who had so innocently seen their pleasure, at a cheerful rooster. The painting was thus strictly private in nature and only intended for a narrower circle of initiates. For the same reason, tessin gave the painting to himself as a christmas present in 1747. Roger de robelin (source: 18th century. Carl gustaf tessin on läckö, helsingborg 2005, p. 114). Object Type: painting. Genre: portrait. Date: 1747. Place of creation: Sweden. Dimensions: height: 72.5 cm (28.5 in); width: 88 cm (34.6 in); Framed: height: 93.5 cm (36.8 in); width: 109 cm (42.9 in); depth: 6.5 cm (2.5 in). Medium: oil on canvas. Depicted People: Ernestine von Grisheim, Henrica Juliana Liewen, Charlotta Fredrika Sparre, Agneta Margareta Strömfelt, Ulrika Eleonora Strömfelt, Catharina Charlotta De la Gardie. Collection: Nationalmuseum. The ´Hen Picturé (Johan Pasch d.ä.) - Nationalmuseum - 15471
Loading...
