Adélaïde Labille-Guiard was the daughter of a Parisian haberdasher. She began to exhibit in her thirties. As a proponent of the French Revolution she painted several portraits of dissidents of the royal court, such as Madame Roland and Robespierre. She also worked hard to facilitate the education of women artists and accepted many women as pupils in her own studio even if this unabled her to get a studio at the court.