Hersilia's Sisters

“As with any scholarly work, the bibliography is thorough and the notes comprehensive, further adding to its value for specialized libraries and academic programs.”

~Barbara Ann Opar, ARLIS/NA

“Beautifully produced, richly illustrated.”

~A. Luxenberg, CHOICE

“This beautifully produced book focuses on Jacques-Louis David’s career during the Directory and the early Consulate, roughly from 1796 to 1801, when he painted and exhibited the Intervention of the Sabines (the book’s catchy title refers to the woman who led them) and also accepted two private commissions, portraits of Henriette de Verninac . . . and of Juliette Récamier. All three paintings are now in the Musée du Louvre, Paris. As his subtitle makes clear, Norman Bryson is further concerned with ‘the brilliant flowering of women’s culture’ . . . that took place at the time and the way David responded to this phenomenon.”

~Philippe Bordes, The Burlington Magazine

“Bryson’s formal readings are as entertaining as they are idiosyncratic, replete with operatic analogies; his instinct for anecdote and the nexus of biographical relationships is unerring.”

~Tom Stammers, Apollo