Limoges enamel plaque in gilt metal frame

This beautiful Limoges enamel plaque portrays a scene of 18^th Century courtly life. Two ladies, seated in a corner of an idyllic garden, are interrupted in their music making by the approach of a flower-wielding suitor. The manner of the painting, both in terms of its pictorial content, its narrative, and its style of execution, is 18^th Century. Fluid, expressive brushstrokes are utilised by the artist, the colour palette employed primarily of pastel Rococo shades, though the electric green of one ladies dress lends a flash of bright colour to the otherwise subtle palette.

The plaque is contained by an ornate velvet and gilt metal easel-backed frame, the frame surmounted with an ornate torch-and-quiver crown. The painting is signed lower right ‘Dorval’.