Portrait of Princess Alexandra von Dietrichstein (née Shuvalova) (1775-1847)

Vincenzo Camuccini (1771-1844) was one of the most prominent Italian painters of the early nineteenth century, whose talent, craftmanship and exceptional taste were recognised all over Europe by fellow artists, heads of state, noblemen and pontiffs. Born in Rome, Camuccini rose to be the most coveted and famous artist of the city at that time, even receiving the honour to be among the distinguished figures present at the opening of Raphael’s tomb in the Pantheon in 1833. His official acknowledgements included, among others, becoming the head of the Academy of St Luke in 1805 and the Inspector of Public Paintings of Rome and the Papal States in 1814; the artist received honours from Francesco I of Naples, Frederick Wilhelm III of Prussia, Francis I of Austria, King Murat and others, many of whom commissioned portraits from him.
Briefly training under Domenico Corvi (1721-1803), who worked in a Neoclassical style, and his own brother Pietro Camuccini (1761-1833), who was a successful art dealer, the artist started his career by copying the Old Masters. Between the 1790s and early 1800s, young Camuccini first achieved substantial public recognition, with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe praising his talent during the exhibition of his cartoon for Death of Julius Caesar in Rome in 1796. Even though Camuccini was made famous by his historical paintings, usually on ancient Roman or Greek subjects, demand for his portraits eventually became equally great, as pointed out by Ulrich Hiesinger in his 1978 article on the artist (U. Hiesinger, ‘The Paintings of Vincenzo Camuccini, 1771-1844’, The Art Bulletin, vol. 60, no. 2, June 1978, p. 307). This was partly to do with him masterfully executing one of the most prestigious commissions an artist could receive at that time – a portrait of Pope Pius VII (1742-1823), who later conferred upon the painter the title of Baron. Published in 1845 in Germany, Conversations-Lexicon für Bildende Kunst names Portrait of Pope Pius VII together with Portrait of Gräfin von Dietrichstein as Camuccini’s two most excellent portraits (J.A. Romberg, F. Faber, Conversations-Lexicon für Bildende Kunst, vol. 1, Leipzig, 1845, p. 358); an English publication from almost twenty years later adds Portrait of Countess Shuvalova as another brilliant work by this eminent artist (H. Ottley, Biographical and Critical Dictionary of Recent and Living Painters and Engravers, London, 1866, p. 26).
Camuccini often painted foreign ambassadors and aristocrats living in Rome; those who actively participated in the cultural and political life of the city. Princess Alexandra von Dietrichstein (née Shuvalova) (1775-1847), a maid of honour to the Empress of Russia Elizaveta Alekseevna (1779-1826) and a recipient of the Austrian imperial Order of the Starry Cross, was married to Franz Joseph, Prince of Dietrichstein (1767-1854). She lived in Vienna with her husband until their separation in 1804 and later at the court of Princess Caroline Augusta of Bavaria in the 1830s. In 1807-1808 she first visited Rome, where, with the instructions and blessing from Pope Pius VII, she eventually converted to Catholicism. Her mother, Countess Ekaterina Petrovna Shuvalova (née Saltykova) (1743-1817), joined her daughter in 'the eternal city' and in her new faith. According to History of Modern Italian Art published in the late nineteenth century, Camuccini “in 1810 set out from Rome in the party of Princess Dietrichstein, travelling slowly northward by way of Bologna, Parma, and Verona” to visit Munich and Paris (A.R. Willard, History of Modern Italian Art, London, New York: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1898, p. 259). Thus, it was most likely in the Italian capital the distinguished and successful painter met two Russian noblewomen, became close with them and created two magnificent portraits in his refined style. According to Dr Christian Omodeo, a preparatory sketch and a small copy (whereabouts unknown after 1917) of Portrait of Princess Alexandra von Dietrichstein are known to exist.
Camuccini’s most famous and successful works were reproduced as prints during his lifetime, indeed, the portraits of Princess Dietrichstein and Countess Shuvalova were engraved by Domenico Marchetti (1780-ca. 1844). Another attestation to Camuccini’s technical skills and talent is that both works were kept in the family (in the collections of the Dietrichstein and Shuvalov families respectively), with Portrait of Ekaterina Petrovna Shuvalova eventually being acquired by the State Hermitage Museum (inv. ГЭ-5264). Portrait of Princess Alexandra von Dietrichstein represents a rare example of early-nineteenth-century society portraits executed in Camuccini’s more mature Neoclassical tradition. The young woman in the painting sits in an elegant pose with a mountainous landscape visible from behind a dark backdrop that emphasises the splendour of her pearls and the whiteness of her gown, which, together with her hairstyle, seems to be fashionably inspired by antiquity.
We would like to thank Dr Christian Omodeo for his assistance in cataloguing this lot. The work will be included in his forthcoming catalogue raisonné on the artist.