Marie-Guillemine Benoist, Portrait of a Negress, 1800

Marie Benoist belonged to a small and select group of woman painters in the 1800s, and one of her most provocative paintings was Portrait of a Negress. Benoist was the student of another prominent woman painting of the time, Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun. The picture was painted six years after the emancipation of slaves and termination of slavery, but two years before Napoléon reinstated slavery in the French colonies. At the time portraits and images of Africans were incredibly popular. Although the painting was not commissioned it creates a bridge between the movement for women's rights and the abolition of slavery.

Before the nineteenth century, many paintings featuring blacks  merely showcased them as a possession and asserted wealth of the owners of the works. As for Benoist, a majority of her paintings before Portrait of a Negress, were centered on woman and family life. When Benoist brought her portrait to the Salon, it was highly praised. The portrait strayed from the usual representation of blacks as simple servants or splashes of color. Benoist wanted to send a clear message with this painting. She strives to address female agency as well as the racial issues of the time. Although she does the issues at hand justice, she robs the Negress in the painting of her identity and voice and uses her as a vehicle for her message. Unfortunately, the woman remains unnamed .

The painting mirrors many feelings of Benoist and other woman at the time. Benoist longed for freedom in a world controlled by men. This portrait serves as a way from Benoist to break out of the stereotype of other female artists of the time. Yet like the Negress, in the larger picture Benoist is another female artist. She only receives half the recognition she truly deserves.