No starving artist, Vigée Le Brun was the first woman to ever become a court painter in France when she was commissioned to paint Marie Antoinette. She painted royalty and nobility throughout Europe, even as her personal life had its ups and downs.
Yesterday
Unearthed Year-end 2025, Part 2
Discussion of things literally or figuratively unearthed in the last quarter of 2025 continues. It begins with potpourri then covers tools, Neanderthals, edibles and potables, art, shipwrecks, medical finds, and repatriations. Research: Abdallah, Hanna. “Famous Easter Island stat ... Show More
40m 41s
Jan 12
Unearthed Year-end 2025, Part 1
The show's coverage of things literally or figuratively unearthed in the last quarter of 2025 begins with updates, books and letters, animals, and just one exhumation. Research: Abdallah, Hanna. “Famous Easter Island statues were created without centralized management.” PLOS. Via ... Show More
43 m
Sep 2016
Episode #3: The Semi-Charmed Life of Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun (Season 1, Episode 3)
Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, had an image problem: she was seen as frivolous, silly, and out-of-touch. In order to combat her poor press, the royal court commissioned a series of portraits of the queen to make her more relatable and sympathetic. Such images act as excellent ... Show More
47m 47s
Jul 2019
The Second Death of Marie Antoinette
<p>In 1793, the infamous Marie Antoinette was moved to the Conciergerie in Temple Prison. A woman who became synonymous with indulgence spent her final months with almost no personal possessions, separated from her children, awaiting her imminent death.</p><p> </p> Learn more abo ... Show More
23m 10s
Jul 2021
SUR LES TERRES D'ANGELIKA KAUFFMANN
Le nom d'Angelika Kauffman ne vous dit peut-être rien. En France, cette artiste reste méconnue. Elle mérite d'être redécouverte. C'est l'une des premières femmes à mener une grande carrière de peintre, une pionnière.A la fin du XVIIIe siècle, de Rome, à Londres, jusqu'à Saint-Pet ... Show More
7m 37s
Feb 2020
Catherine the Great and her Husband the Mediocre
<p>Catherine the Great, Russia's most famous Empress, wasn't born in Russia—she was a minor German princess engaged to the future Emperor. But less than a year after her husband ascended to the Russian throne, Catherine overthrew him in a coup with the help of her lover in one of ... Show More
26m 42s