This lovely painting is 'La Letrice' (the Reader) by Alix Aymé (1894-1989). It is lacquer and gold leaf on a wooden panel and probably a self-portrait with a young relative. Kindly sent by a friend in the US who is collecting and cataloging her work -- you can see the website here, with lots of information and more lovely paintings. Apparently she died 'on her 95th birthday while putting the finishing touches to one of her lacquer pieces'. I can't think of a better way to go!
