Juliette Récamier ran one of the most famous salons in Paris, and David painted her in 1800 reclining barefoot on a sleek antique-style sofa. Today that kind of sofa is still called a “récamier.”

The painting is unfinished. Récamier also commissioned a portrait from David’s student François Gérard, and David, offended, stopped working on his. Look at the bare walls and the tall lamp: the emptiness is part of its elegance.