Curatorial Narrative The Portrait of Comtesse Starjinska by Eugne Isabey is an exemplary embodiment of Neoclassical ideals, transporting the viewer to the refined world of 19th-century aristocracy. Painted in the soft, nuanced manner characteristic of its era, this portrait presents a subject imbued with an air of dignified serenity, her countenance reflecting the introspective nature of the Neoclassical aesthetic. Isabey’s brushwork is notable for its restraint, as he employs subtle gradations of tone to create a sense of atmospheric weight that draws the viewer’s gaze into the canvas.When enlarged to 44×57 inches, the chromatic structure and spatial rhythm of the portrait assert themselves with increased force. The neutral tones employed by Isabey imbue the subject with an otherworldly quality, while the compositional structure maintains a sense of balance, evoking a feeling of stasis that is at once both elegant and imposing. In