Revealing the Face of Marie Antoinette (Photoshop Reconstruction)

*Project requested by user/Mrmsee888
The Austrian-born princess who was to become one of the most celebrated, controversial, and tragic figures of French royal history was born in 1755. She was the 15th child in her large family, but like all her brothers and sisters she was meticulously groomed and trained by her parents to be of the highest quality. And she was. Nature had given her a natural and stunning beauty which made her valuable beyond compare, and when the time came to choose a husband for her, the crown prince of France, Louis XVI, accepted quickly.
Royalty, however, could not buy happiness, and Marie often found herself at odds with her plain-looking, socially awkward husband who also appeared to have some severe deficits in the marital bedroom, to the point where pregnancy was impossible. For the next several years, Marie unhappily endured snide and wicked remarks about her apparent infertility. Marie vented her frustration by making bitter comments about the stuffiness of French aristocracy, naming certain family members and other high members of the court--a blunder which would come back to haunt her. Nature, would, in time, grant her the children that both she and the nation were counting on, but at a cost that would affect them all.

It didn't help that Marie's mania for high fashion and fine decor cost the King over and above what he had budgeted for her in allowance, and that Marie's frilly, exaggerated costumes were making her the laughing stock of French royalty. France was losing its patience the Austrian beauty, who always seemed to be more loyal to her native Austria than to France. The French nobility was tired of being snubbed by the Queen as she preferred to spend her time with her chosen circle of friends and less with the traditions and rituals of the palace. The first smoke of the volcanic ash of hatred toward the Queen began in rumors created and spread within the French aristocracy itself, not the public, though the public soon followed the royalty's lead. The legitimacy of Marie's children were called into question, as well as her loyalty to French government. It was suggested that Marie was promiscuous with both men and women of her acquaintance, and that she secretly was supporting her native Austria with payments of French money. It didn't matter that virtually all of these allegations were fraudulent. To be named in the suggestion of them was as damaging to Marie's reputation as if they had been true. By the 1780's, there was nothing that Marie could do that wouldn't cause the public to twist her motives and spit them back at her in contempt.

Before a Revolutionary Tribunal, King Louis XVI was tried for treason and sentenced to death in December 1792. On October 14, 1793, Marie Antoinette was tried and convicted of treason...as well as for the many other "crimes" which her fellow nobles had fabricated years before and the public had subsequently believed and embellished upon. Stripped of her children, her finery, and her hair, Marie was already dying from the devastation of all her losses when she was taken to her public execution on October 16, 1793. Haggard and almost unrecognizable as France's once most celebrated beauty queen, even at the young age of 38, Marie nonetheless commanded her own space and sat straight and noble, defying the world which had forsaken her, relinquishing her last moments alive to the judgement of her Gods, not the public, who even after her death took savage delight in defiling the person they thought she was, dumping her mutilated body into an unmarked grave.

*Marie Antoinette was described by her painter as having perfect, near translucent skin, blonde hair, and a full, voluptuous figure with a generous bosom.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• marie
• antoinette
• the
• face
• of
• real
• picture
• queen
• french
• France
• Austria
• revolution
• king
• Louis
• XVI
• royalty
• government
• scandal
• Austrian
• princess
• high
• fashion
• style
• court
• etiquette
• revolutionary
• war
• nobles
• nobility
• aristocrat
• aristocracy
• monarchy
• children
• Paris
• marriage
• beauty
• beautiful
• look
• like
• photoshop
• cs2
• reconstruction
• restoration
• colorization
• retouching
• glamour
• conspiracy
• revolt
• rebellion
• rebels
• murder
• execution
• politics
• heir
• story
• tragedy
• history

[sajriel]

hello there! I am very amazed to this video, can I make a request. Please make a younger version of Marie Antoinette? i bet the time of the original portrait of marie antoinette was when she is already a mother? can you make a younger version or reveal her face when she was still in her 20's? Thanks. I can't help but make this request. I'm sorry for my bad english i hope u did not misunderstood me. thanks again.

[JudeMaris]

@sajriel Hey, Sajriel. Marie Antoinette was less than 38 years old at the time of her execution, and she remained beautiful for most of that time. Knowing that she aged gracefully, the differences in her face, even in the space of 18 years, would be fairly small and a new project might not show that clearly. However, I will keep your suggestion in mind!

[Butterfly1Queen]

ok serious question here ... what are u basing the final pics of the ppl on? is it just that you're making them look prettier or are u looking under the paint and seeing something that has faded with time or something? Or are u just saying that this cld be how they looked if painted differently?

[JudeMaris]

@Butterfly1Queen Fair question: My technique when making these sorts of projects is to look at as many existing portraits of the person as possible & look for consistencies--that tells me the real features that don't change between artists. Next I look up historical descriptions of the person which can point to more clues about their appearance, personality, and proportions. Thirdly, I take all that information & build a structurally realistic image using the painting as a base.

[Rkh16ful]

please do the death mask of martin luther the reformer

[JudeMaris]

@Rkh16ful Strangely, my research into Martin Luther the reformer has turned up so many accurate and lifelike portraits done by other artists in comparison to his death mask that I would be hard-pressed to top them!

[WinefrideofWales]

I'm addicted to your videos :)

[LaSerpentaCanta]

I would love it if you could do one of Amelie Gautreau, the subject of the famous Madame X painting, but I guess it's unlikely given the fact that no portrait of her looking to the front exists.

[shoshalozaa]

Awesome work! Would it be possible to do one of Livia Drusilla?

[LylythTV]

Merci. Excellente work. Much appreciated.

[Alou926]

@JudeMaris what is the name of the background song you used? Great work too!

[sajriel]

@remembercassandra I agree, on other MA's paintings, you can clearly see that she has a (slight) Hapsburg jaw and chin and her forehead where a bit high plus i wished u made her eyes much bigger. but she still looks very beautiful though.(sorry for my english.)

[sajriel]

@JudeMaris i don't doubt about Marie Antoinette's beauty, its just that It makes me think (it intrigues me) how does she looks when she was younger after I watched your video. I wish digicams were already available at her time. anyway, thank you very much for making this video. I really liked it. i hope u can still make a younger Marie Antoinette. thanks again.

[faeryquene]

I am really enjoying your work! Modern-day techniques to try to bring the somewhat flat features of these legends! (I mean 'flat' as far as say some medieval paintings, and more ancient art work! People seemed more realistic in portraits beginning around the Elizabethan era).

[Spoelstral]

Your videos are really amazing. Just one little thing about this one: I know she was usually portrayed in a wig, but I recall reading that Marie Antoinette was naturally a strawberry blonde, heavy on the strawberry...in fact her hair color was once described as "carrots"...