Portrait of a Lady at a Pianoforte
Adèle Romany
(French, 1769–1846)
about 1808
Medium/TechniqueOil on canvas
Dimensions129.5 x 94 cm (51 x 37 in.)
Credit LineSeth K. Sweetser Fund
Accession number2014.1010
On View
On viewClassificationsPaintings
Collections
Romany depicts a female student or companion of the popular composer Joseph Dominique Fabry Garat standing at a pianoforte, her right hand absentmindedly tapping the piano keys while her left holds a musical score titled with Garat’s name. An inscription on the instrument identifies the esteemed piano maker Sébastien Érard, whose technical innovations are still used in the manufacture of modern pianos today.
Inscriptionsinscribed 'RECUEIL DE ROMANCES PAR GARAT JEUNE Son Ami ZUASNAVAR Enregistré à la Biblioth... Auteur Fabry Garat' (on the manuscript); and inscribed 'Èrard et Fr Privilégiée du Roi à Paris' (on the pianoforte)Provenance1950s, sold by the Maison Jansen, Paris, to a member of the Scarpa family, São Paulo, Brazil and Florida; June 5, 2013, consigned anonymously by the Scarpa family (“property from a private Florida collection”) for sale, Christie’s, New York, lot 104, bought in; June 4, 2014, sale (“collection of the Scarpa family”), Christie’s, New York, lot 81, sold to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 25, 2014)
Unidentified artist, Belgian, fourth quarter 18th century
Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi)
Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi)
William Walker