How many times have you had your photo taken? How long did it take?
This girl lived 250 years ago -- long before cameras were invented -- so an artist had to paint her portrait. It was a long and tedious process, especially if the artist did the portrait in oils. But she was lucky. Swiss artist Jean-Etienne Liotard often used pastels to make his portraits.
Pastels are similar to colored chalk. Artists can work more quickly because pastels don't need time to dry. Even better, pastels don't create unpleasant odors like oil paints do.
The girl in this picture, named Maria, was 7 when her portrait was made. She was the daughter of a count and countess. Her family must have liked her portrait because they also asked Liotard to paint her mother and other members of the family.
Maria's shawl is made of blue velvet and fur. It's a piece of clothing that Liotard often painted people wearing. A small, black dog sits on her lap and stares out at us, looking eager to hop right out of the painting.
Liotard was famous for his lifelike portraits. Many people wanted him to paint their pictures. He was sought after by the pope and other religious and political leaders.
You can see this portrait and many others in the J. Paul Getty Museum's paintings collection at the Getty Center. Don't miss the free storytelling session for families at 11:30 a.m., and 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. Nov. 20. Stop by the information desk at the museum and receive a free postcard. The current exhibition, "Titian and the Commander: A Renaissance Artist and His Patron," is on view through Feb. 5. For more information, go to www.getty.edu or call (310) 440-7300.
This Learning Link was provided by the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center in Los Angeles.
