Portrait of Catherine Bégon 1746

Editor: Here we have Jean-Étienne Liotard's "Portrait of Catherine Bégon," made in 1746 using pastel. I’m struck by its air of delicate melancholy, almost like a whispered secret from another era. What pulls you in when you look at this portrait? Curator: It's that very whisper, isn't it? The way Liotard coaxes such detail and intimacy from pastel – a medium often dismissed as frivolous. Catherine Bégon appears veiled, both literally in lace and perhaps emotionally. One can almost smell the powder and hear the rustle of silk. The Rococo loved its frippery, yes, but look closer: what do you sense beyond the finery? Do you notice a narrative unfolding in the simple act of holding that fan? Editor: I guess I focused so much on the lace details that I missed that narrative. The fan… It's like she’s pausing, maybe about to speak, or maybe contemplating something? It gives her agency in a way I wasn’t expecting. Curator: Exactly! Liotard was Swiss and spent time painting in various royal courts. So he was witness to the world he captured. How might Catherine be seen differently through his eyes, or hers? There's this real feeling of being present with her, in that fleeting moment before something happens. The stillness has a unique intensity about it, don't you think? It almost transcends the conventions of courtly portraiture. Editor: Absolutely! Seeing how Liotard creates a sense of inner life instead of only depicting surface beauty changes the way I appreciate portraits from this period. It feels less like a static depiction, and more like a captured thought. Curator: Yes, indeed! She's not just an object, but a woman pausing for reflection. Always consider the layers, dig deeper!