Portrait of Wiktoria Pociej

Wiktoria Pociej was the daughter of Stanislaw Potocki, the Poznan voivode, and Helena Zamoyska. She was married to the Lithuanian guardsman Ludwik Pociej. Her portrait was painted following the canons of a ceremonial European portraiture of the second half of the 18th century. Wiktoria is depicted in a slight turn in a nominal oval on a dark background, illuminated near the face, drawing attention to her lyrical figure. The woman is dressed in a décolleté dress with a jewelled brooch, an ashy wig, and a black ribbon around her neck, which was fashionable for the Rococo period. The artist paid particular attention to the aristocratic features of the proud and self-confident noblewoman's face. An inscription on the oval around the woman informs about the portrayed "Wiktorya z Potockich corka Stanislava woiewody Poznanskiego i Heleny Zamoyskiey woiewodzianki Smolenski Pociejowa Straznikowa Littewska". A similar portrait belonged to the Potocki-Sadowski collection (Ж-1110). The painting is paired with a portrait of her husband in Wroclaw and bears the author's signature, F. Pawlikowicz.

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery