Portrait of The Comtesse de La Fayette (Marie-Madeleine Pioche De la Vergne)

Known primarily for his early paintings of religious scenes and altarpieces, Avignon-based artist Nicolas Mignard was also commissioned to paint numerous portraits of members of the court of King Louis XIV. In 1660 the King summoned Mignard to Paris, where he continued to practice as a portrait painter and rise through the ranks of the Académie Royale. This portrait of The Comtesse de La Fayette was likely created shortly after the artist moved to Paris. Born Marie-Madeleine Pioche de la Vergne, the sitter was married in 1655 to François Motier, Comte de La Fayette, with whom she lived at his country estate until they separated amiably, and she returned to Paris. Prior to and after her marriage, Madame de La Fayette enjoyed strong and favorable court connections and a well-established place in distinguished literary circles. Throughout the 1660s Madame de La Fayette published several conventional romances, often anonymously. Her most influential masterpiece, La Princesse de Clèves, was not published until 1678. It is often referred to as France’s first historical novel, and one of the earliest novels in literature.