Portrait of Princess Isabella Czartoryska née Fleming

The painting was purchased by the Museum as the work of an anonymous 18th century French painter and, over the course of time, was attributed to Alexander Roslin, a Swedish pastel painter who spent almost his entire life in Paris, where he became one of the most famous and most wealthy portraitists of his times. Many people came to the capital of France only for the reason of being portrayed by Roslin (“le Suédois”). The manner of painting and the remnants of an inscription over the shoulders of the models: “de l’ordre” – probably an abbreviation from “chevalier de l’ordre de Gustav Vasa” – as well as the date of 1774 confirm the attribution. Princess Izabela Czartoryska stayed in Paris until April 1774, thus the portrait had to be painted in the first half of the year. She probably posed for Alexander Roslin not only on account of his great fame, as she must have been familiar with the portrait of the sister of her husband, Elżbieta née Czartoryska Lubomirska, painted approx. 1767 (currently in the Palace in Wilanów). The portrait of Izabela Czartoryska is to be included in the series of very successful works of Roslin. We see a woman with beautiful brown eyes, luxuriant brown hair surrounding her face and falling onto her shoulders and lips that are too wide, which the artist skilfully masked with a delicate smile. The painter noticed the flaws and the advantages of his model’s beauty, but also presented them in a manner that an image of a sensitive woman was created, full of life, open and interested in the world and people. The image is supplemented by a shiny dress and delicate lace around the neckline, contrasting with it, as well as the matte fabric of the blue shawl. The portrait is one of the most interesting images of Izabela, and it became a model for numerous copies. It is worth mentioning the words of the princess, uttered about her appearance when she was thirty-five: “I have never been beautiful, but I was often pretty. I have beautiful eyes, and due to the fact that all the feelings of my soul are visible in them – the expression of my face tends to be engaging. My skin is quite white; my forehead is smooth (…). My face is in the shape of a pretty oval. I have enough hair to adorn my head; it is as dark as my eyebrows. (…) My face is similar to my mind – the greatest attraction of both depended on the dexterity with which I was able to double their value.”