The Portraitist: A Novel of Adelaide Labille-Guiard

The Portraitist: A Novel of Adelaide Labille-Guiard

Susanne Dunlap

Publication Date: August 30, 2022 by She Writes Press

Genre: Historical Fiction

Rating: 5 🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷 

Summary: Based on a true story, this is the tale of Adélaïe Labille-Guiard's fight to take her rightful place in the competitive art world of eighteenth-century Paris.

With a beautiful rival who's better connected and better trained than she is, Adélaïde faces an uphill battle. Her love affair with her young instructor in oil painting gives rise to suspicions that he touches up her work, and her decision to make much-needed money by executing erotic pastels threatens to create as many problems as it solves. Meanwhile, her rival goes from strength to strength, becoming Marie Antoinette's official portraitist and gaining entrance to the elite Académie Royale at the same time as Adélaïde.
When at last Adélaïde earns her own royal appointment and receives a massive commission from a member of the royal family, the timing couldn't be worse: it's 1789, and with the fall of the Bastille her world is turned upside down by political chaos and revolution. With danger around every corner in her beloved Paris, she must find a way adjust to the new order, carving out a life and a career all over again--

My Thoughts: In this most recent release Dunlap brings to light the oft overlooked 18th century French female artist Adelaide Labuille-Guiard. At a time when women were expected to accept their husband's word as law and not argue with any demands put upon them, Adelaide sought a divorce. At a time when women weren't supposed to do anything more than be a wife and a mother, Adelaide sought a career as an artist. At a time when women weren't encouraged to engage in work outside of the home, Adelaide fought to open her own studio to teach fellow female artists. Adelaide did not have the benefit of family status to secure her place in society like other artists. She had to use any advantage she gained access to, her wits, and her talent to surge her way forward. 

Susanne Dunlap has become a go-to author for me. She chooses fascinating people/places/events to explore and hasn't fallen into the security of consistently writing about the same topics. Her style of writing is timeless as it is both easy to read and contains vivid descriptions about her characters and locations. Dunlap seems to have found the perfect balance with adding just the right amount of fact and fiction to her books. In The Portraitist she didn't seek out to provide a comprehensive biography about Adelaide. Instead Dunlap created a well crafted tale that highlighted one woman's triumph over adversity. 

Many thanks to Susanne and She Writes Press for a copy of this book.