Vigée Le Brun was for the most part self-taught. Highly ambitious – by fifteen she was her family’s sole earner – within a few years, she was married off to a high-society (albeit gambling) art dealer. Not only did he introduce her to the Parisian cultural elite, but his job meant she could access, copy and study the most important paintings of the day. Commended by patrons for her soft textures and desirable portraits, which made her sitters appear slightly more attractive than in reality, in 1778 Vigée Le Brun caught the attention of Marie Antoinette. Striking up a close friendship with her
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