Portrait of a Young Woman

The woman in this portrait by Horace Vernet sits nestled in the landscape, almost merging with it. Her white dress contrasts strikingly with the dark foliage. By linking the woman with the landscape in such a physical way, Vernet expressed the sensibilities of the Romantic movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The Romantics saw expressive emotion in Nature and humanity’s relationship to it. Vernet includes details that may suggest aspects of the woman’s personality and circumstances. Her white muslin and pink ribbon and belt evoke girlish innocence. She may, however, be engaged to be married: the violets she holds traditionally symbolized faithfulness, while juniper (the tree that seems to engulf her) could signify chastity. Vernet came from a family of artists. His grandfather, Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714–1789), a celebrated landscape artist, painted the canvas Evening, also in the Museum’s collection.