Jean-Marc Nattier
, French, 1685-1766
Title
Charlotta Fredrika Sparre (1719-1795), later Countess FersenDate1741
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions
64 x 53 cm
Signedcentre right: Nattier px. 1741
Credit LinePurchased, 1961 (Shaw Fund)
Object numberNGI.1646
Label TextThis Swedish noblewoman was twenty-two years old when her portrait was painted by the French artist Nattier. At the time, she was living in Paris with her relatives, the Count and Countess Tessin, who commissioned the portrait. Nattier often painted mythologised portraits of women. Here Charlotta is shown with the attributes of Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt: a leopard skin around her shoulders and a hunting bow. She wears her hair short and powdered, in a style that was fashionable at the time in France. Charlotta later became chief mistress to the Queen of Sweden.