Portrait of Philippe Coypel and His Wife

Charles-Antoine Coypel served as First Painter to the King and was also a professor at, and eventually Director of, the French Academy. Part of a powerful artistic dynasty, he was a significant collector, an aesthetic theorist, playwright, and poet, and an amateur actor. Although many of his most important paintings have been lost, this unusual double portrait pastel probably commemorates the tenth anniversary of the artist's beloved brother, Philippe Coypel ( 1703-1777) and his wife Marie-Catherine Botet. A true tour-de-force, this work shows one of France's most esteemed public artists at his very best.