Please take a look at the enormous painting between the two stoves – it measures two point five by one point seven metres – equivalent to just over eight by five and a half feet. You’ve probably recognised August the Strong – in a standing pose, with a determined look on his face. And next to him on the table are the electoral sword of Saxony and the insignia of the Polish crown. This state portrait is a demonstration of power, through and through. Even when the Elector wasn’t present, it served as a proxy, demonstrating who was master of palace and country.
The portrait always hung in the State Apartment, right from the very beginning. It was painted by Louis de Silvestre. Having trained in Paris, he travelled to Dresden in 1716 at the Elector’s invitation. De Silvestre stayed and worked for more than three decades as court painter, both under August the Strong and under his son, August the Third. Quite apart from political affairs, both rulers placed great value on art. It was no coincidence that Dresden developed into a glittering royal seat in the baroque style during this period.
August the Strong developed a fondness for French luxury goods early on. In 1687, at the age of 17, he set out on the Grand Tour, which took him to Paris, among other places. In the 17th and 18th centuries, such a journey to various royal courts in Europe was, in a sense, part of basic training for any prince and future ruler. Friedrich August the First also had the pleasure of such an educational tour – long before he entered the history books as ‘the Strong’.
On that journey, he learnt to refine his conduct at court and practised his diplomatic and political skills. But he also developed his artistic taste, because the education programme included the art collections and buildings of the courts he visited. During the time he spent in Paris, he paid frequent visits to the palaces of Versailles, St. Cloud and even Marly. During visits to the royal workshops he was able to see for himself what kind of luxury articles were being made for the court. It all made a profound impression.
Later, when the State Apartment was being furnished, August the Strong drew on a lot of what he had seen in Paris – experiences that had definitively shaped his ideas about holding court in a style calculated to convey prestige.
