Portrait of Anna Constantia von Brockdorff (1680–1765), Countess von Cosel, and her son Friedrich August (1712–1770), later Count von Cosel, as Venus and Cupid

Artist Simon de la Vallée French, 1680–circa 1730

ArtistAfter François de Troy French, 1645–1730

Publisher Honoré-Thomas Bligny French, circa 1742–1785

Datecirca 1712–1715 or after

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions58 1/2 x 45 1/2 in. (148.6 x 115.6 cm)
Frame: 74 1/2 x 62 x 6 in. (189.2 x 157.5 x 15.2 cm)

ClassificationsPaintings

Credit LineGift of Newhouse Galleries

Object numberG.67.22.2

On View

Not on view

Label TextFrançois de Troy has been credited with inventing the portrait déguisé, wherein the sitter was portrayed in the guise of a different personage such as a god, goddess, or historical figure. This type of portrait was very popular among aristocratic women of the period, allowing them to reinvent themselves pictorially, challenge their confining social roles, and demonstrate their learning.

In this portrait Anna von Brockdorff (1680–1765), the Countess von Cosel, is portrayed as Venus. Her shell chariot is drawn by a dove, both traditional symbols of the goddess. Anna, a well-known beauty, was the mistress of Augustus the Strong and bore the ruler three children, including Friedrich August (named after his father), depicted here as Cupid. In the wake of political intrigues at Augustus’s court, Anna was banished to a remote castle in 1713 and spent the remaining fifty-two years of her life in exile.
[D. Steel, 2010]ProvenanceMarquise de Chambrun, Paris (Margaret Rives Nichols [ca. 1872-1949]?); with Newhouse Galleries, New York (by August 1963); given to NCMA, 1967.
Published ReferencesCharles M. Blanc, Histoire des Peintres de Toutes les Ecoles Vol. 1, (1861) illus. 1.

"Front Matter," The Burlington Magazine 105, no. 725 (August 1963), ii, illus. b/w.

A Loan Exhibition of French Masters of the Eighteenth Century (exhibition catalogue) (New York: Finch College Museum of Art, 1963), cat no. 1, illus. b/w.

"Acquisitions," North Carolina Museum of Art Bulletin 7, nos. 2 and 3 (1967/68?), mentioned 3, listed 66, illus. (b-w) 42, fig. 2.

"Outgoing Loans to Temporary Exhibitions," North Carolina Museum of Art Bulletin 13, no. 3 (1976), listed 58.

Exhibition HistoryNew York, NY, Finch College Museum of Art, "A Loan Exhibition of French Masters of the Eighteenth Century," February 27-April 7, 1963, cat. no. 1, illus.

Lexington, KY, University of Kentucky Art Gallery, "19th Century European and American Academic Painting," October 21-November 11, 1973.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, Mary Duke Biddle Gallery, "Facets of Faces: Functions of Portraits," September 1, 1989-June 1, 1990.

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