Francois Boucher
Madame de Pompadour, mistress of Louis XV, admired Boucher and was his patroness from 1747 until her death in 1764. This famous work was commissioned for the dressing room at Bellevue, her château near Paris. In 1750 she had acted the title role in a play, The Toilet of Venus, staged at Versailles. While this painting is not a portrait, a flattering allusion may have been intended.
The bodies of the goddess and her cupids are soft, supple, and blond. The carved and gilded rococo sofa, as well as the silk, velvet, and gold damask drapery are heavy and elaborate appropriate for the Victorian era.