Why it matters
The countess stands before a mirror, her raised index finger coyly placed by her mouth. Ingres, who preferred history painting, accepted few portrait commissions at the time, and this is one of them.
Did you know?
- It was completed in 1845.
- He abandoned a first attempt when she became pregnant and could no longer pose.
- She later wrote essays, biographies and historical novels.
Based on the Wikipedia article Portrait of Comtesse d'Haussonville (CC BY-SA 4.0).
