Easel

Tradition has it that Empress Marie-Louise presented this easel to her painting teacher, the miniaturist Jean-Baptiste Isabey. Constructed from mahogany, it bears the monogram of Napoleon’s last consort near the top. Easels were regularly found in the painter’s studio and often pictured in artists’ self-portraits, such as the Adélaïde Labille-Guiard’s 1785 painting with two pupils, also in the museum’s collection (53.255.5). Less commonly considered as pieces of domestic furniture, this Empire period example suggests that painting was practiced as a pastime among women of elite rank even after the fall of the Old Regime. This easel is similar to a model executed by Jacob Desmalter and owned by Marie-Louise, located today at the Château de Fontainebleau.