The court painter, german artist g. H. Groot became famous in russia as a master of small-format, chamber imperial portraits. He portrayed empress elizabeth petrovna (1709-1762) sometimes on horseback, sometimes, as in this portrait, as a lady in black, holding a mask in her hand. The brownish-red lush curtain, against which elizabeth petrovna is depicted, gives the portrait a ceremonial and solemn quality. This portrait is a typical work of a rococo master, where the artist concentrates on the playful moment, transforming and modifying his heroine through dressing up and masquerade. The image of the empress, the ruler, recedes before the captivating, graceful, mysterious appearance of the beautiful stranger in black. Rococo, for the first time in russian art, reveals in the image of the reigning sovereign features of intimacy, even intimacy, turning no longer to the official, but to the private side of her life. Signature at the bottom right: gc grooth pinx. 1748. Acquired in 1931 from the state hermitage. A copy of the painting is in the state russian museum. The work is listed in the inventory book of the state tretyakov gallery under number 15170. Date: 1748. Dimensions: height: 64.5 cm (25.3 in); width: 47 cm (18.5 in). Medium: oil on copper. Collection: Tretyakov Gallery. Elizabeth of Russia in masquerade dress by Grooth (1748, Tretyakov gallery)
Loading...
