The Lesson of Singing

The Lesson of Singing by Louis de Silvestre is an allegorical painting. The scene shows two female half-figures with strongly contrasting complexions. The foreground figure is fresh and youthful, with a light complexion. The darker colour of the complexion of the woman in the background emphasises her old age. The contrast between old age and lush youth has been a theme of interest to painters for centuries. The fascination with the stages of human life also resounds in the Lublin painting. However, it lacks the necessary expressive power to convey important spiritual and moral messages. It constitutes a representation typical of the Rococo style, intended mainly to please the eye and decorate the interior. Elements from the music world, i.e., a sheet of music in the young girl's hand and a viola da gamba in the older woman's hand, are the key to deciphering its meaning. The unusually intimate atmosphere of the canvas evokes unequivocal erotic associations. That may be popular from the 17th-century representation of the type ‘who sells her favours’, a composition showing a Mac Daddy and a young girl being introduced into the dubious arts of love for sale. Another source of inspiration for the painter may have been the love story of Vertumnus and Pomona, known from Ovid's Metamorphoses.