The Marquise de Pompadour

From 1747 Madame de Pompadour ran a small private theatre in the palace of Versailles, the Théâtre des Petits Cabinets, where she sang and acted for the king with a cast of courtiers. Boucher's picture of around 1750 surrounds her with the same accomplishments. She stands in a pale, shimmering gown, one hand on the keys of a harpsichord, an open score propped above it. Books fill the bookcase behind her, and at her feet lie a globe, rolled papers, a red portfolio and a few scattered roses. The picture is fairly small, painted in oil on paper that was later mounted on canvas. The Louvre shows it among the furniture and objects of Louis XV's reign, in Room 614 of the Sully wing.