Woman Playing the Violin, Seen from the Back ca. 1758-59 Louis de Carmontelle Musicians figure prominently in Carmontelles portrait drawings throughout his career and, with their implication of movement, provide some of his more lively subjects. Although he would depict the young Mozart, for the most part his subjects were aristocratic amateurs. In cultured households, such performances were a favored form of entertainment. The Wrightsman pair of drawings, showing a standing woman playing the violin seen in three-quarter view and from the back, is unusual in that their mounts bear neither inscription nor date. They can, however, be compared stylistically to an early group of drawings Carmontelle made when he was employed as a tutor in the household of the duc de Chevreuse. Many of these are dated in or around 1758 and share the high horizon line, blank background, and patterned floor of the Wrightsman pair. In general, watercolor is added more sparingly in the early drawings, allowing