Judgement of Paris n.d.

François Le Moyne made this drawing, "Judgement of Paris," using brown wash, heightened with white chalk on paper. Le Moyne lived during the reign of Louis XV, a period marked by the French court's elaborate displays of power. The drawing depicts a mythological beauty contest, judged by Paris, a mortal man. He must decide which goddess is the fairest: Juno, Minerva, or Venus. The choice is fraught. It has been suggested that Paris’s choice of Venus mirrors the cultural elites of the time. Perhaps like them, Paris was vulnerable to bribery and swayed by beauty? What’s more, the male gaze is pronounced. Paris is at the center of the composition, surrounded by partially nude goddesses vying for his attention. In this drawing, Le Moyne perpetuates a dynamic where female bodies are objects of scrutiny, reinforcing the power of the male observer. The drawing then serves as a window into the gendered and political dynamics of 18th-century France.