Isabelle Mayer, otherwise known as Isabelle de L’oeil was a French National who excelled as a talented and skilled artist. As such, she served during the Revolution as a chef to General Bernard barricade-surgeon to the King, and later on, she established a salon in Paris where she trained men for a number of careers including the art of acting. During this time, she also became a very proficient painter. However, her most impressive artistic achievement was in the area of drawing, which is where she would show a true understanding of form and color. She also excelled at architecture and even worked on some historical paintings.
In 1780, she decided to open her own studio and designed many works of art, which include The Queen of Cities (a depiction of Paris), The Professional (a work dedicated to the architectural aspects of government), The Adoration of the Magi, The Adventurer, The Merchant, The Surveyor, The Engineer, The Bridge Builder, The Pilot, The President, The Advertiser, The Spy, The Monumental, The Citizen, The Veteran, The Sun, The Veteran, The Survivor, The Judge, and The Painter. All of these were displayed in the Louvre in Paris, which is where she received the commission of painting The Artist. While all of these were commercial and public works of art, the very last in the series of these was entitled Theheight of Profession, and it depicted her career in the courts of the French monarchy. Regardless, she never received any sort of award from this commission, which is strange since this would have been a true representation of the heights of professionalism that she had exhibited throughout her life.
Of course, one could say that all of her work was simply amazing, but only the fact that she was able to keep up a long career for almost a century shows that she truly was a remarkable woman. In fact, her official biographer, Jean Baptiste Freschin, noted, “Isabelle was the very model of what a profession in painting should be like: refined, dignified, amiable, devoted to humanity, and absolutely without pretension.” It is hard to find a woman who exemplifies all of those traits, yet Isabelle Mayer did, and she certainly deserves all of the plaudits she’s been given over the years for her accomplishments as an artist. She was truly a truly great woman, and she has left a lasting impression on many people over the years. Her career will always be remembered for the success she enjoyed in both art and her public life.