A Portrait of King Stanislaus II Augustus

The portrait of the last King of Poland is an excellent example of the intimate portrait art popular in Europe at the end of the 18th century. The precision in the drawing of the sharply lit face and clothing of the subject, shown against the backdrop of cloudy skies, demonstrates the quality of the technique used by Lampi, an Italian Classicist portrait painter. The artist worked in Verona, Trento, Salzburg, and Vienna. In 1788–1791, on the invitation of King Stanislaus II Augustus, he also worked in Poland.