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Notes
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This painting is typical of the pastoral scenes at which Boucher particularly excelled. It is one of numerous studio copies made of The Love Letter (National Gallery of Art, Washington), which he painted for Louis XV’s mistress, Madame de Pompadour, in 1750. The format of the Washington painting is almost vertical, but this copy is horizontal. As a result, the composition has been reduced at the top and bottom and has additions at both sides. These include the base of a column on the right-hand side and the young boy leaning on a gate on the left of the picture. Variations in painting quality suggest that several people in Boucher’s large studio may have worked on this copy.
Title
The Billet-Doux
Date
1754
Medium
Oil on canvas
Measurements
H 95.3 x W 127 cm
Accession number
NG4080
Acquisition method
Bequeathed by Mrs Edith Cragg, as part of the John Webb Bequest, 1925
Work type
Painting
