MET's Vigee LeBrun: Woman Artist in Revolutionary France-Knew When to Flee

Elizabeth Vigee Le Brun is touted at the MET "Woman Artist in Revolutionary France."  I contend she documented portraits of Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI, their family & French aristocracy just prior to the French Revolution making these paintings particularly meaningful.  Le Brun, an autodidactic artist is famous for having hung the heads of Marie Antoinette and the Imperial family in lovely paintings just prior to their having lost their heads (literally) to the guillotines during the French Revolution (1789-1799.)  Her paintings are lovely examples of Rococo style - transitioning into Neo-Classicism.  Her brilliance as a painter pales in comparison to her savvy for knowing when to transition out of France.  I viewed these pretty pictures with a heavy shade of macabre knowing many painted in their glory & finery will soon be executed.  (How could you not?)  Le Brun's skill with the paintbrush brought her into close proximity with the imperial family and help sustain her after fleeing Paris just at the precipice of the French Revolution.  Le Brun met with success amongst the elite aristocracy in Venice & St. Petersburg where she honed her skills.   Take note of the years dating her works; many up til 1790 in France.  Her technical skills capturing light & texture are reflected in the elaborate fabrics, jewels & plumes adorning her subjects.  Note the family portrait of Marie Antoinette with her 3 children (and the empty crib) commissioned by the King(1785) making Le Brun the 1st woman to have been bestowed the honor.  Also note LeBrun's self-portrait in which she is painting a portrait of the queen (1788) and the lovely & clever portrait LeBrun made of her beloved daughter looking into a mirror.  I wondered if the portraits painted of the Viennese aristocracy were laden with deep red paint reflected on the bloody insurrection in France.  The exhibit is interesting for its historic significance and the irony of the beauty that precedes the bloodbath of Revolutionary France.