French portrait drawings
from Clouet to Courbet
Exhibition text
Sarah Vowles
This document is classified OFFICIAL
Introduction
This exhibition presents a selection of French portrait drawings from the British
Museum’s collection. Ranging from the splendour of the 16th-century Valois
court to the decadent theatrical glamour of 19th-century Paris, it includes many
works never previously exhibited.
The portrait drawings displayed here offer small-scale, intimate records of
patrons, friends and loved ones, shown with an informality not always
permitted by the conventions that governed painted portraits. Usually executed
in chalk, pen or graphite, drawings were also more affordable to produce.
Artists turned to drawings to depict not only patrons, who commissioned their
portraits, but also to their own families and social circle. The increasingly
democratic nature of portrait drawing can be seen here, as kings and artists
are joined by wealthy travellers, artisans and members of the demi-monde, on
the edge of respectable society.
The flexibility of the form also allowed artists to experiment with unusual
effects or innovative forms of presentation. In these ways, portrait drawings
allowed informal, creative exploration, through which both draughtsman and
sitters could challenge and subvert the traditional notion of portraiture.
Section 1
Valois and early Bourbon France
about 1550-1630
In the 15th and early 16th centuries, portraiture was almost exclusively the
preserve of the nobility and royalty. Portraits of the king, often represented in
profile, were political documents, distributed as signs of favour and regarded as
a substitute for the king’s personal presence. The iconography of royal portraits
was chosen by the king himself and strictly limited to approved artists.
In private, however, a more informal mode of court portraiture had begun to
develop. The Clouets, a father and son who successively became court
portraitists, produced a series of intimate, naturalistic drawings of favoured
courtiers and members of the royal family. The freshness of these portraits
would have a profound impact on the Clouets’ successors and would create a
new standard for both royal and non-royal portraiture in France.
The section begins with a drawing by Jean Clouet which falls slightly earlier than
the given dates, as a means to put the drawings of François Clouet in context.
The Valois and Early Bourbon Kings
Valois
François I (ruled 1515–1547)
Henri II (ruled 1547–1559)
François II (ruled 1559–1560)
Charles IX (ruled 1560–1574)
Henri III (ruled 1574–1589)
Bourbon
Henri IV (ruled 1589–1610)
1
Jean Clouet (c.1485/90–1540)
Portrait of an unidentified gentleman, c.1535
Black and red chalk
Originally from the Low Countries, Jean Clouet developed the format of
bust-length, three-quarter portraiture which would later be developed further
by his son François. The current portrait can be tentatively dated by the
fashion of the sitter’s German-style doublet with its square neck. Clouet
shows the clothes in greater detail than usual, perhaps because the fashion
was unfamiliar to him. The sitter is presumably a member of the Tavannes
family, as the inscription calls him ‘the uncle of the Seigneur de Tavannes’.
However, none of the suggested identifications is convincing. Related
paintings are in the Kestner Museum, Hanover and the Alte Pinakothek,
Munich.
Bequeathed by George Salting
1910,0212.54
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2
François Clouet (c. 1515–1572)
Catherine de’ Medici, c.1547
Black and red chalk
It seems to have been Catherine, Henri II’s queen, who commissioned the
great series of portrait drawings that François Clouet made of the Valois
royal family and their courtiers. This portrait, never previously shown
publicly, is Clouet’s earliest surviving likeness of the queen herself, made
shortly after her husband’s accession to the throne in 1547. She wears a
gown buttoned at the front, which was usually adopted by pregnant women
instead of a restrictive corseted bodice. The portrait’s inscription was
amended after Henri II’s death to read ‘mother of the king’. This implies the
drawings were not stored away, but instead used as an active record of the
life of the court.
Bequeathed by George Salting
1910,0212.84
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3
François Clouet (c. 1515–1572)
King Henri II, c.1547
Black and red chalk
This portrait was probably made at around the same time as Clouet’s
portrait of Catherine. It is the earliest known portrait of Henri II as king, and
formed the basis for his official iconography in painted portraits for the first
years of his reign. The king’s beard is still cut in the squared-off style of the
1540s, rather than in the more rounded fashion he would adopt in later
portraits of the 1550s. He was originally sketched wearing armour, traces of
which are still visible beneath his doublet, but must have ultimately decided
that this more informal dress was more appropriate. A portrait of the young
king in profile, from the same date, is in the Musée Condé, Chantilly.
Bequeathed by George Salting
1910,0212.77
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4
François Clouet (c. 1515–1572) and studio
François de Scepeaux, c.1559 and c.1566
Black, red and yellow chalk
Portraits were not always regarded as finished works of art. This portrait of
de Scépeaux, Sire de Vielleville and maréchal de France, offers a glimpse
of Renaissance practice. The portrait was probably originally made around
1559, but several years later Clouet returned to the portrait, perhaps at the
request of de Scépeaux or perhaps from Catherine de’ Medici, in order to
update the likeness. Pentimenti, or changes, are visible to the line of the
doublet’s shoulders and to the shape of the cap: the brim was originally a
little broader. It was not only the fashion that was brought up to date: de
Scépeaux himself was retouched, with fine dark wrinkles added at the
corners of his eyes.
Bequeathed by George Salting
1910,0212.80
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5
Daniel Dumonstier (1574–1646)
A young girl, 1615
Coloured chalks
Dumonstier came from an even larger artistic family than Clouet, with a
father, uncles and cousins who were also painters. He established himself
not only as court artist, but also a courtier and renowned collector. This
charming portrait of a young girl, heightened with delicate pink washes, was
once thought to show the young Anne of Austria, Louis XIII’s future queen.
This has been questioned, as in 1615 Anne was still in her native Spain, but
it is possible that Dumonstier based his drawing on an official portrait sent
in advance to the French court. Like Clouet, Dumonstier uses a threequarter view that allows a sense of interaction between viewer and sitter.
1859,0514.294
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6
Lagneau (active 1590–1625)
An old woman, c.1620
Black and red chalk, with charcoal
Little is known about Lagneau, although his name has long been
associated with a particular kind of portraiture in chalks. These drawings
tend to show elderly or characterful figures, whose features have
sometimes been exaggerated into caricature. In other cases, like the
drawing shown here, Lagneau was capable of an attractive naturalism.
Using smudged chalks, he renders the soft wrinkles of the old woman’s
face and her strong underlying bone structure. Her identity, as with many of
Lagneau’s sitters, is unknown. Indeed, although this portrait seems to have
been drawn from life, it is not clear whether Lagneau meant for it to be
regarded as an image of an individual, or as an allegorical or genre study.
1859,0514.285
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The related engraving
7
Jacques Callot (1592–1635)
Louis de Lorraine on horseback, 1624
Brush and brown wash, black chalk, incised for transfer; the head in black
chalk on an added fragment, shown with the related engraving
In this print study, Louis de Lorraine is shown mounted on a rearing horse
holding a marshal’s baton. The print was probably commissioned to mark
Louis’s assumption of the title Prince of Phalsboug, granted to him by the
Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II in 1624. The composition focuses on
Louis’s military renown as Marshal of Lorraine, which at this date was an
independent duchy on the borders of France, with a distinctive artistic
style. It can be seen that Callot added the Prince’s head at a later stage.
This may indicate a modification to an earlier drawing, replacing the head
of another commander.
Gg,2.343 (drawing); 1861,0713.716 (engraving)
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8
Pierre Dumonstier II (1585–1656)
The hand of Artemisia Gentileschi, 1625
Black and red chalk
Pierre Dumonstier was the cousin of Daniel and, like him, specialised in
portraits in chalks. During a visit to Italy in 1625, he met the celebrated
painter Artemisia Gentileschi in Rome. Playfully subverting the notion of
portraiture, Dumonstier made this careful ‘portrait’ of her hand, thereby
immortalising the feature which made Artemisia most distinctive. She is
shown holding her pen, in the act of working. In poetic inscriptions on both
sides of the drawing, Dumonstier writes of his admiration for Artemisia. On
the back, he notes: ‘The hands of Aurora are praised and renowned for
their rare beauty. But this one is a thousand times more worthy for knowing
how to make marvels that send the most judicious eyes into raptures’.
Nn,7.51.3
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Table Case 1
Medals and enamels from the
Valois and Bourbon courts
Obverse
9
Reverse
Jean Lepère (active 1499)
Double-sided medal showing King Louis XII of France (obverse) and his
wife Anne of Brittany (reverse), 1499
Cast bronze medal
In 1499 the consulate of Lyon decided to commission a medal as a gift for
Anne of Brittany, who was due to visit their city with her husband King Louis
XII in March 1500. This bronze medal is one of several casts from the
mould, based on a model by Nicolas Leclerc and Jean de Saint-Priest.
Anne was presented with a golden cast, while a copper cast was kept in the
Lyon town hall and a lead cast is also recorded. The design, with fleur-delys and ermines, was based on an earlier medal that Lyon had
commissioned from Jean Lepère in 1494 as a present for Anne when she
had visited the city with her first husband, King Charles VIII.
M.2153
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Obverse
Reverse
10 French School, 16th Century
Cameo portrait of François I of France (obverse) and his consort Eleonora
of Portugal (reverse), 1530–1547
Onyx double cameo
This is an example of the portrait jewellery that was produced for the
French court. Antique cameos were greatly prized in the Renaissance and
this period saw a revival of the ancient craft. Using a piece of onyx with two
differently coloured strata, this cameo presents a double portrait of François
I and his second wife. François, shown here, is carved into the dark brown
side of the stone, while Eleonora is carved on the back into a creamy pale
layer. Each layer is set off by the contrasting shade of the other layer seen
behind it. The iconography of François’s portrait probably derives from a
painting by either Jean Clouet or Joos van Cleve.
1890,0901.17
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Obverse
Reverse
11 Attributed to Léonard Limousin (c.1505–1575)
Medallion with portraits of the Dauphin François (obverse) and François I
(reverse), 1539
Painted Limoges enamel plaque
This double-sided medallion adopts the form and imagery of antique
medals in its portrait of the Dauphin, who is represented in profile wearing
armour. On the reverse of the medallion his father, François I, is shown in a
more informal full-face portrait like those being produced at the same date
by Jean Clouet. Yet this is not a simple assertion of a dynastic succession.
It is in fact a mourning portrait, perhaps intended to be carried on the
person or kept for private contemplation. The Dauphin had died three years
earlier in 1536, hence the black rim to his portrait, and so the medallion had
a personal, intimate function.
Donated by Sir Augustus Wollaston Franks
1885,0508.15
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Obverse
Reverse
12 French School, 16th century
Catherine de’ Medici, 1589
Cast silver gilt medal
Catherine is shown here dressed in widow’s weeds, thirty years after the
death of her husband King Henri II. The profile portrait alludes to classical
antecedents and gives Catherine a stern air that is absent in her earlier
crayon drawing by Clouet. However, for all its assumption of antique forms,
the medal is far from idealised, showing Catherine with a receding chin and
sagging neck. On the reverse of the medal, an allegorical emblem shows
clouds of vapour rising from quicklime. This is said to be an allusion to
Catherine’s continued mourning for her husband: the quicklime represents
the dampened flames of passion, but the vapour represents her continued
love and loyalty to his memory.
M.2205
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13 Attributed to Jacques Rouaire (c. 1500–1571)
Superimposed portrait busts of Kings François I, Henri II and François II,
c.1560
Cast uniface bronze medal
This medal was probably cast to emphasise the continuity of the Valois line
of kings from their founder, François I, to his grandson François II, who
came to the throne in 1559 at the age of fifteen after his father Henri II’s
death in a jousting accident. It not only chooses the format of classical
profiles but also shows the three kings in laurel wreaths, while François I
wears an antique mantel, directly comparing the Valois dynasty to that of
the Caesars. The design is derived (in reverse) from a medal by the
goldsmith Jacques Rouaire, in which François I and Henri II are shown in
profile along with Julius Caesar and another classical personage.
Donated by King George IV
G3,FrM.75
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14
Germaine Pillon (c.1537–1590)
King Henri III, 1575
Cast uniface bronze medal
Henri was the third surviving son of Catherine de’ Medici and Henri II, and
he succeeded his brothers Francis II and Charles IX as king. He was also
said to be his mother’s favourite child. In this striking medal he is shown
not in the customary regal profile, but in an engaging three-quarter view
which has much in common with Clouet’s series of intimate crayon
portraits. The king’s individuality is emphasised, rather than his royal
status. This is only one of a series of medals made by Pillon of the Valois
royal family, all of which adopt Clouet’s format. He was one of the first
medallists to use a three-quarter presentation, which remained rare in
later centuries, and he was able to convey a piercing sense of
psychological insight.
M.2157
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15
Attributed to Joseph Limousin (c.1600–1650)
The marriage of Louis XIII and Anne of Austria, c.1615
Painted Limoges enamel plaque
This remarkable plaque was made to celebrate the continuation of the
Valois dynasty through Louis XIII’s marriage to Anne of Austria. It is
based on a print by Léonard Gaultier. In the centre, an angel unites the
hands of the kneeling Louis and the young Anne, its wings spread over
them, with the dove of the Holy Spirit hovering above. Louis is
accompanied by his widowed mother Marie de’ Medici, who stands at
the left. The standing man on the right, wearing the Order of the Golden
Fleece, is probably Anne’s father, Philip III of Spain, signalling the union
of two great royal dynasties.
1855,1201.19
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Section 2
The Bourbon Kings
about 1630-1760
The artist’s field of opportunity broadened rapidly in the 17th and 18th
centuries and the portraits on display from this period show a new
cosmopolitan self-confidence. Emulating their Italian counterparts, French
artists claimed the right to be considered practitioners of the liberal arts,
rather than mere craftsmen. Their increase in social status was confirmed by
the foundation of the Académie Royal in 1648, which placed the artistic
establishment under royal patronage.
Artists increasingly sought out classical precedents and parallels for their
work and sometimes even adopted them in portraits, which would have been
unthinkable in an earlier period.
The new awareness of and interest in the artist as a cultural figure
encouraged the making of drawn portraits and self-portraits. More affordable
to produce than an oil painting, these were sometimes given as gifts by the
artist to patrons or friends.
The Bourbon Kings
Louis XIII (ruled 1610–1643)
Louis XIV (ruled 1643–1715)
Louis XV (ruled 1715–1774)
16
Attributed to Pierre Biard II (1592–1661)
An old man in working dress, early 17th century
Black and red chalk, with blue-grey wash
This intense, evocative portrait is something of a mystery. The Italian
inscription at lower left refers to ‘Pietro Biardo dy Parigi’, but it is not clear
whether this identifies the artist or the sitter. Pierre Biard was a sculptor
and engraver, the son of an architect and sculptor also called Pierre Biard.
No certain drawings by the younger Biard are known, yet this drawing is
the work of an accomplished draughtsman. The style suggests that it dates
to the first quarter of the 17th century, which is when Biard is most likely to
have visited Italy. If this is indeed by Biard himself, then it is an important
and unique example of his skills.
Bequeathed by William Fawkener
T,13.70
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17
Attributed to Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665)
Self-portrait, 1630
Red chalk
The extensive inscription in Italian gives some context to this muchdiscussed drawing. It explains that Poussin drew this self-portrait around
1630, while recovering from a serious illness, and gave it as a gift to his
patron Cardinal Camillo Massimi. The handwriting is probably that of
Francesco Maria Niccolò Gabburri, a later owner of this drawing, who
collected artists’ portraits about fifty years after Poussin’s death. Despite
this early testimony, Poussin’s roles as artist and sitter were rejected in the
1994 catalogue of the artist’s drawings. Red chalk is an unusual medium
for Poussin, but not unique. It was the usual choice for portrait drawings in
17th century Rome where Poussin worked for most of his career.
1901,0417.21
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18
Nicolas de Plattemontagne (1631–1706)
Double portrait of Jean Baptiste de Champaigne and his wife Geneviève,
1677
Black, red and white chalk
With its allusions to antiquity and grandeur, the profile remained an
appealing portrait format. Here it is used to impressive effect in a double
portrait made as a gift by the artist. Plattemontagne and Champaigne
shared Flemish ancestry and had become firm friends while training with
Champaigne’s uncle Philippe de Champaigne. Their friendship had already
been celebrated in a double portrait painted by Champaigne in 1654 (now
in the Boijmans-van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam). In 1677
Champaigne and his wife had been married for ten years and
Plattemontagne may have made this portrait as a flattering and
affectionate anniversary present. Champaigne made a copy of the
drawing, which is now in the Kunsthalle, Karlsruhe.
1857,0228.218
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19
Antoine Watteau (1624–1721)
Head of a young man, c.1717
Black and red chalk
The British Museum has more than fifty drawings by the French artist
Watteau, who was especially famous for his trois crayons technique, in
which he used black, red and white chalks to suggest the flush of living
flesh. In this spontaneous study, a young man is captured in a few brisk
strokes of chalk which emphasise his pointed nose and sharp chin. It
appears to be a quick informal portrait sketch drawn from life without the
sitter’s knowledge, but the line between portrait and head study can be
difficult to maintain at this period. Watteau used this young man as the
basis for one of the heads in Les Charmes de la Vie, a painting now in the
Wallace Collection.
1900,0613.3
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20
Antoine Watteau (1624–1721)
A young abbé, c.1720
Black and red chalk
This portrait of a sprightly young abbé has, rather incongruously, been
drawn over a faint study of a reclining female nude. The frame was
added by a later collector, in order to focus attention on the portrait, and
originally the division between the two figures would have been less
defined. This abbé also appears in another portrait by Watteau in the
British Museum, where he is seen turned away from the artist, almost in
profile, but his identity is unknown. It was probably drawn shortly before
Watteau’s death and an inscription on the back of the sheet, in the
handwriting of his friend the Comte de Caylus, records that Watteau left
the drawing to Caylus as a gift. At this date, Caylus was 29 years old, but
this cannot be a portrait of him as he was never an abbé.
1886,0609.39
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21
Attributed to Jean Baptiste Perronneau (1715–1783)
Portrait of a man, early 18th century
Black, red and white chalk on blue-grey paper
This drawing has been traditionally attributed to Perronneau, one of the
most gifted and successful pastel portraitists of the 18th century. Due to
the court’s patronage of his rival Maurice-Quentin de la Tour, however,
Perronneau spent much of his career working for clients outside Paris. The
genial sitter in this drawing has not been identified. In this study, which is
free without losing any of its characterisation, the artist displays his talents
as a draughtsman. Brisk, loose lines record the details of the sitter’s coat,
with its heavy cuffs and large buttons; the fringe of fur around his tricorn
hat and the lace of his cuffs and cravat.
1927,0712.18
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Table Case 2
Robert Nanteuil
Portraits in print
22
Robert Nanteuil (1623–1678)
Rolin Burin, 1650
Graphite on vellum
Nanteuil arrived in Paris from his native Reims in 1647 and developed his
skills by working with the engraver Abraham Bosse and the painter
Philippe de Champaigne. His portraits, in graphite, print and pastel, were
increasingly sought after by court officials and the nobility. This drawing
dates from only three years after his arrival in Paris, and shows Rolin
Burin, who in 1654 would be appointed secrétaire du roi and, in 1657,
Grand Audiencier, the chief official of the chancery. The inscription on the
drawing records that it was presented as a gift to Burin’s sister, perhaps
explaining the warm and affable presentation of the sitter.
1895,0915.949
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Drawing
23
Engraving
Robert Nanteuil (1623–1678)
Gilles Ménage, c.1652
Graphite on vellum, with the associated engraving by Nanteuil, dated 1652
The outspoken scholar Gilles Ménage began his career as a precocious
lawyer and then moved into the Church. His inquisitive mind and
tempestuous spirit led to a quarrel with his first patron and later caused
him to be banned from the Académie française. By the date of this portrait,
he had moved to a residence in the cloister of Nôtre-Dame and made a
living from his position as Prior of Montdidier in Picardy, and as tutor to
Madame de Lafayette. His association with her gave him a strong
appreciation for female thinkers. He spent much of his career studying
ancient philosophy and, in 1690, published a collection of 65 lives of
female philosophers from the ancient world.
1854,0628.68 (drawing) and 1877,0811.973 (engraving)
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Section 3
Monarchy, Revolution and Empire
about 1760-1800
This period was marked by the growth of interest in new theories of science,
politics and social structure as France adopted the ‘enlightened’ beliefs found in
the works of thinker like Voltaire and Rousseau. The profile became a popular
format for small-scale portraits of men of letters and artists, which were often
made in preparation for prints. Yet, at the same time, imaginative and original
new portrait formats were being developed to appeal to the thirst for novelty
among the upper classes. Both Carmontelle and Bernard, whose works are
shown here, created innovative portraits which capture the playfulness and
elegance of the ancien regime. By the end of the century, such frivolity was
fading fast. The fall of the monarchy encouraged simpler, more sober forms of
portrait and gave new prominence to the increasingly powerful and influential
bourgeoisie or middle class.
Monarchs and Rulers
Louis XV (ruled 1715–1774)
Louis XVI (ruled 1774–1792)
The French Republic (1792–1804)
Napoleon I (ruled 1804–1814)
24
Louis Rolland Trinquesse (1746–after 1795)
A young man in profile to the right, c.1770
Red chalk over a red-chalk counterproof
Trinquesse was a celebrated painter of ‘gallant’ scenes of flirtation, as
well as a gifted draughtsman. His favourite medium for drawing was red
chalk, as seen here in this portrait which may have been preparatory for a
print. The first layer of this drawing is actually a counterproof, which is
taken by pressing a sheet of damp paper down on a fresh chalk drawing.
The moisture lifts particles of the chalk, creating a reversed copy of the
image on the second sheet. It was a method often used by designers for
prints, because it would allow them to see what their composition would
look like in reverse. Trinquesse has refined and strengthened the
counterproof by adding new, stronger areas of hatching on the young
man’s face and clothes.
1928,1110.30
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25
Jean Michael Moreau le Jeune (1741–1814)
The artist’s daughter Fanny, c.1772
Black, red and white chalks
Moreau is best known for his small, delicate pen designs for book
illustrations and this large and vivacious chalk drawing is unusual both in
size and style. It may have been executed as a work for display in the
home. The artist’s two-year-old daughter Catherine Françoise, known as
Fanny, is shown in a remarkably informal pose. By the late 18th century,
the depiction of children was changing even in oil paintings. They were
increasingly shown engaged in play and other appropriate activities, rather
than as miniature adults. Childhood became regarded as a precious time
of innocence. Even so, few paintings capture children with the warmth and
liveliness that Moreau conveys with his chalks.
Bequeathed by Helen, Viscountess d’Abernon
1954,1009.1
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Engraving
26
Drawing
Charles Nicolas Cochin fils (1715–1790)
Jean Siméon Chardin, c.1776
Red chalk
Cochin spent much of his career designing prints, particularly book
illustrations, and this portrait of the painter Chardin is one of a large series
of circular portraits which Cochin made of eminent figures in the arts. By
this point the elderly Chardin had given up painting his characteristic still
lives and genre scenes in oils, due to declining eyesight, and preferred to
use pastels. Cochin’s drawing is mounted with the corresponding print by
Jean François Rousseau (1740–after 1776), published in 1776. However,
another version of the drawing was probably used in the printmaking
process, as there are no signs of stylus or other transfer methods on the
present sheet.
Presented by Charlotte Gere in honour of Antony Griffiths
2011.7048.1 (drawing) and 1989,1104.444 (print)
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Carmontelle and the court
at Saint-Cloud (nos. 27-31)
The British Museum possesses five portrait drawings by Louis Carrogis, called
Carmontelle (1717–1806), all of which are on display here. He was a multitalented engineer, architect, garden designer and dramatist. After working as a
military engineer during the Seven Years War, he was employed by the duc
d’Orléans, one of the greatest noblemen in France, in 1763. Here his duties
ranged from acting as tutor to the duke’s children, to designing elegant gardens
for the duke’s stately home at Saint-Cloud.
However, Carmontelle is now best known for the extraordinary series of portrait
watercolours that he made of the duke’s guests and servants at Saint-Cloud.
These were conceived as amusements for the visitors, each taking only two
hours to complete, and now preserve a captivating glimpse of noble life in the
mid 18th century.
27
Louis Carmontelle (1717–1806)
The duc de Chevreuse, 1758
Black and red chalk, on two conjoined sheets
Marie-Charles-Louis d’Albert de Luynes, duc de Chevreuse and duc de
Luynes, was 41 at the date of this portrait. He was an experienced military
commander and had served with distinction in the war of the Austrian
Succession. In 1754 he had been promoted to the rank of Colonel Général
of Dragoons and also held the post of Governor of Paris. In this drawing
Carmontelle shows him in an authoritative pose that suits his military
background, wearing riding boots and a sword with his tasselled cane
planted firmly in front of him and his tricorn hat tucked under his arm.
1904,0614.2
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28
Louis Carmontelle (1717–1806)
Le Coureur de Saint-Cloud, c.1765
Black and red chalk with watercolour
Carmontelle did not just represent the favoured visitors to the Duke of
Orléans’s country seat at Saint-Cloud. He also produced portraits of the
numerous officials and servants at the château, who were considered as
part of their master’s family in its widest sense, as including his household
as well as his blood relations. Even relatively humble members of staff
were portrayed by Carmontelle. The man’s profession is given as ‘coureur’,
a runner who carried messages around the estate. Carmontelle shows him
in his working clothes, wearing a peaked cap and carrying his messenger’s
bag under his arm.
1904,0614.3
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29
Louis Carmontelle (1717–1806)
Madame de Vermenoux, c.1765
Red and black chalk with watercolour
Anne Germaine Larivée de Vermenoux was one of the great beauties of
her age. Carmontelle shows her relaxing in an elegant garden wearing a
spotless white silk gown, a letter in her hand. The curve of her reclining
body is echoed by the arching branch of the tree above. Mme de
Vermenoux was constantly troubled by ill health and travelled in search of
cures, most notably settling for a prolonged period in Geneva. She
remained in Switzerland from 1758 until 1764 and commissioned two
portraits from Jean-Etienne Liotard during her stay. Carmontelle’s portrait
probably dates from shortly after her return to France in 1765, when she
considered herself cured and returned to courtly circles.
1904,0614.5
Find out more
30
Louis Carmontelle (1717–1806)
Félicité Geneviève Elisabeth de Jarente, la Marquise de La Croix, c.1770
Watercolour and bodycolour
This elegant lady has traditionally been identified as Félicité Geneviève
Elisabeth de Jarente (1720-after 1795), the wife of Maximilien Joseph
Charles, marquis de La Croix, an officer in the service of the King of
Spain. The identification is not certain, however, as another portrait by
Carmontelle at the Musée Condé, Chantilly, is also said to show the
Marquise and the two sitters are evidently different women. This lady, in
her ruffled pink dress, reclines in a garden, with a multi-layered fountain
in the distance. Among his other duties, Carmontelle designed gardens
for the duc d’Orléans and in this drawing he alludes to the fancies and
follies of his horticultural designs.
1904,0614.4
Find out more
31
Louis Carmontelle (1717–1806)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart at the age of seven with his father Leopold and
sister Marie-Anne, 1777
Watercolour and bodycolour
In 1764 the Mozart family visited Paris, where the young Wolfgang
Amadeus captivated audiences with his precocious ability and charm. Yet
at first Leopold Mozart struggled to get an introduction to the court.
Eventually he was helped by M. Grimm, the secretary to Carmontelle’s
patron the Duc d’Orléans. Grimm arranged the Mozarts’ first court concert,
winning Leopold’s gratitude. Carmontelle’s first portrait of the Mozarts,
made in 1764, is now at Chantilly. This is one of three known replicas by
the artist, made later to meet demand for the young composer’s portrait.
The composition was also engraved.
Transferred from the National Gallery
1994,0514.48
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32
33
Jean Joseph Bernard (1740–1809)
Portraits of Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette, 1786 and 1787
Pen and grey and brown ink, watercolour
Bernard began his career as writing-master at the court of the cultivated
Stanislas, exiled King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lorraine. When
Stanislas died in 1766, Bernard moved to Paris and developed a form of
calligraphic portraiture which rapidly brought him acclaim among the
French elite. The ultimate accolade followed in around 1778, when he was
invited to make portraits of Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette. He produced
numerous versions of these portraits in the next ten years to satisfy
popular demand. The two on display date from the later part of this period,
shortly before the Revolution. After the fall of the monarchy, Bernard
shifted his loyalties and became writing master to Napoleon.
1889,0806.10 and 1889,0806.11
Find out more about Louis XVI or Marie-Antoinette
34
Jean-Baptiste Isabey (1767–1855)
A lady seated in a landscape, 1793
Black chalk, graphite and white heightening
In its scale, this elegant portrait challenges a painting and was clearly
intended to be displayed on a wall. In its technique, it emulates mezzotint,
a form of printmaking largely used by British artists. Mezzotint was much
admired in Europe and was imitated in sumptuous chalk drawings, whose
style earned the name ‘manière noire’ or ‘black manner’. Isabey was one
of the first to adopt this technique, creating a dense, velvety texture which
nevertheless preserves the fine details of the lady’s features and her
gown. The tradition of showing a sitter at ease in a landscape also
derives from British art. Isabey may have become familiar with it through
prints of portraits by Gainsborough and Reynolds.
Purchased with the support of the Art Fund, the Ottley Group and the
British Museum Friends
2007,7060.1
Find out more
35
Philippe Auguste Hennequin (1762–1833)
Sir Sidney Smith in the Temple prison with his secretary John Wesley
Wright and François de Trome, 12 December 1796
Pen and brown ink, grey wash
The tempestuous Hennequin was imprisoned for his extreme
Revolutionary beliefs in 1796. While at the Temple prison he encountered
Sidney Smith, a captured British naval officer. This drawing was
commissioned by Smith after seeing some earlier portrait sketches by
Hennequin. Here Smith stands nonchalantly on the right, with his loyal
secretary John Wesley Wright beside him. The seated man is probably the
disguised French Royalist François de Tromelin. Hennequin represents the
three men as if caught in animated discussion, their poses and the
shallow, relief-like composition testifying to Neoclassical influences.
1963,1214.14
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36
Charles Toussaint Labadye (1771–1798)
Auguste Labadye, the artist’s brother, 1797
Charcoal with stump and white chalk
This elegant young man leans against a tree, holding a stick. An inscription
on the back of the drawing identifies him as the future architect Auguste
Labadye (1777–1851), the younger brother of the artist. The splendid
portrait is densely worked to suggest the velvety tones of mezzotint and
dates from the year before Labadye’s death at the age of only 28. It is one
of his very few surviving works. Little is currently known about his brief life
and career, except that he studied with the Neo-classical painter FrançoisAndré Vincent and exhibited portraits of deputies of the French Assemblée
at the Salon in 1798.
2001,0728.6
Find out more
37
Philibert Louis Debucourt (1755–1832)
Portrait of the artist’s second wife, 1799-1800
Black and white chalk, pastel, heightened with white
The lively lady in this portrait holds a letter, which bears an inscription from
the artist himself: ‘My friend… your friend for life, Debucourt’. At the time
the portrait was drawn, the unmarried 38-year-old Suzanne-Françoise
Marquant lived next door to the artist’s family in Paris. In 1801, however,
Debucourt’s first wife and his son both died. In 1803 he married SuzanneFrançoise as his second wife. She would die shortly before him, in 1830 or
1831. Debucourt was a painter and printmaker who often produced
satirical scenes, and a measure of his humour appears in this intimate
portrait, where he conveys Suzanne-Françoise with warmth and
irrepressible mischief.
Presented by the Ottley Group
2007,7039.1
Find out more
Table Case 3
Portrait medals
from 1700 to 1900
38
Benjamin Duvivier (1730–1819)
Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and the Dauphin led towards the Tuileries
Palace by a personification of Paris, 1789
Struck silver medal
Here a full-length image of Louis XIV, with Marie-Antoinette and their
eldest son, appears on the reverse of a medal. It blends portraiture and
propaganda. A group of loving citizens waits to greet the royal family
outside the Tuileries Palace and the medal’s inscription reads ‘I will make
this [place] my home’. It implies a happy homecoming, but the reality was
less rosy. The royal family had just been forced by a revolutionary mob of
market-women to return to Paris from Versailles. Far from returning to the
arms of an admiring crowd, the king, queen and their family would
become virtual prisoners in the Tuileries until their executions.
M.8704
Find out more
39
Pierre Baldenbach (1762–1802)
Marie-Antoinette, 1793
Struck silver medal
This is another example of the use of portrait medals as propaganda.
Made in Vienna, this medal was issued in memory of Marie-Antoinette
shortly after her execution on the guillotine in October 1793. Although not
strictly a French portrait, it indicates the demand for likenesses of the
French royal family, which were further stimulated by the shocking
circumstances of their deaths. Similar medals were produced in England.
Pierre Baldenbach, who engraved the die for this medal, had begun his
career as a locksmith before discovering his talent as a medallist. Most of
his medals celebrate Austrian military victories, but he also made a medal
commemorating Louis XVI.
Bequeathed by Dr John Brighouse
1914,0107.36
Find out more
40
After Nicolas Heurthaux (active 1811–1813)
Napoleon and the Imperial Family, c.1811
Gilded bronze uniface medal
The composition of this piece was taken from a medal struck by Nicolas
Heurthaux in 1811. It celebrates the birth of Napoleon’s son, known as the
King of Rome, who is shown as an infant in the centre, surrounded by his
family. From clockwise at lower left, he is joined by his mother, the
Empress Marie-Louise; Napoleon’s mother, Madame Mére; the Empress’s
father, the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II of Austria; Napoleon himself;
and Francis II’s third wife, Marie Louise Beatrix. All except the child are
shown in profile with classical accessories, emphasising Napoleon’s belief
that he was the spiritual successor of the Roman emperors. This medal
may have originally been set into the lid of a snuff box.
Donated by Dr Frederick Parkes Weber
1906,1103.1411
Find out more
41
David d’Angers (1788–1856)
The artist’s son, Robert David d’Angers, 1834
Oval bronze uniface medal
David d’Angers was best known for a series of large bronze medallions
showing notable men and women of his day, but he also used the format
for more intimate images. This portrait of his infant son Robert is similar in
format to a roughly contemporary medal of David’s daughter Hélène.
However the present piece does not show the medal in its final, published
form. Before adding the final details to his wax model, David seems to
have taken a mould, from which this medal was cast. Later he added
further detail to the wax model – lettering, and elaborate trimming on
Robert’s bonnet – and these additions appear in published medals cast
from the final mould.
Donated by Dr Frederick Parkes Weber
1906,1103.1627
Find out more
42
Jean François Antoine Bovy (1795–1877)
Franz Liszt, 1840
Bronze medal
In 1840 Liszt had returned to the life of a travelling virtuoso pianist, having
fallen into financial difficulties that forced him to leave his comfortable
existence with his mistress and children. He was at the height of his fame
and his concerts were enthusiastically attended: there was great demand
for his portrait. Liszt had been painted by Ary Schefer in 1837 and now
had a portrait made in bronze by the Swiss medallist Bovy, who had
moved to work in Paris. The large scale and fine sculpting of Liszt’s
features displays Bovy’s talent as a sculptor, as does the contrast
between the smooth background and the textures of skin and hair. 19th
century medallists would increasingly turn to larger sized medals to show
off their work.
M.626
Find out more
43
Jean Désiré Ringel (1847–1916)
Victor Hugo, 1884
Cast uniface bronze medal
The Alsatian medallist Ringel, who spent most of his career in Paris, was
especially renowned for two series of portrait medals of eminent
Frenchmen from all branches of the arts and scientists. This medal of the
author Victor Hugo formed part of the series. Cast on a large scale, the
medals represented their subjects with inscriptions or emblems suitable
to their field of expertise. As the imposing size of this medal shows,
medallists were increasingly presenting themselves to the world as
sculptors on a par with those who executed larger works in marble or
bronze. Ringel’s medal of Hugo was publicised in 1885 with an illustration
in the popular magazine L’Art.
M.6963
Find out more
Section 4
New horizons
about 1800-1900
This selection of 19th century portrait drawings continues many themes seen
throughout the exhibition so far. Artists still turned to drawing to record the
features of those closest to them, whereas the intimacy and small scale of
portrait drawings made them attractive to middle-class patrons. The potential of
the drawing as an experimental space also continued to be attractive, as artists
broke free from the constraints of the traditional art establishment, embodied by
the Académie, and explored new techniques and styles.
Works on paper offered a wide variety of aesthetic effects, from highly-finished
watercolours which acted as substitutes for paintings, to expressive charcoal
drawings which exploited the textural quality of the technique. This section
includes drawings made as independent works, and as studies for lithographs,
engravings, paintings, and even political cartoons.
The 19th Century
Louis XVIII (ruled 1814–1815)
Napoleon I (ruled March–June 1815)
Napoleon II (ruled June–July 1815)
Louis XVIII (ruled 1815–1824)
Charles X (ruled 1824–1830)
Louis-Philippe I (ruled 1830–1848)
Second French Republic (1848–1852)
Napoleon III (1852–1870)
Third French Republic (1870–1940)
44
Jean Baptiste Wicar (1762–1834)
The engraver Giuseppe Longhi, 1802
Black chalk, squared for transfer, on tracing paper
Giuseppe Longhi, who was 36 at the date of this drawing, was an
engraver, miniaturist and theorist from Lombardy. He met Napoleon in
1796 and, in January 1802, was a delegate at the council in Lyons which
established the imperial Cisalpine Republic. At this date he was Professor
of Engraving at the Accademia di Brera in Milan and is shown smartly
dressed, resting his left hand on a portfolio of his work and holding an
engraver’s burin in his right hand. Wicar, who had trained in the studio of
Jacques Louis David, was also closely connected with the imperial regime.
He had earlier served on two commissions, in the Netherlands and Italy,
which identified significant works of art to be removed and taken to Paris
for display. Since 1800 Wicar had been living in Rome.
1859,0709.1925
Find out more
45
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres (1780-1867)
Portrait of Sir John Hay and his sister Mary, 1816
Graphite
Ingres worked in Rome from 1804 until 1824 and, from 1814, gained great
renown as a portraitist. He was frequently sought out by French and British
visitors to the city. Sir John Hay is here shown with his sister Mary, later
Mrs George Forbes. However, the iconography is unusual. Both siblings
are shown with flowers and the engagement ring on Mary’s finger is
prominently displayed. The drawing had been commissioned as a betrothal
portrait by Mary’s fiancé, George Forbes, who was called away from Rome
just before the sitting. As Ingres refused to reschedule, her brother Sir
John stood in for Forbes.
Presented by the Art Fund
1938,0817.1
Find out more
46
Théodore Géricault (1791–1824)
A woman with her three children, c.1820
Black chalk, squared for transfer, on tracing paper
In April 1820, Géricault left France for London, where The Raft of the
Medusa was put on display in the Egyptian Hall on Piccadilly from June
until December. The woman shown in this portrait drawing is the wife of
the shoemaker with whom the artist lodged. He probably only stayed here
for the first few months of his stay in London, and would later move to
lodge with the wealthy horse-dealer A. Elmore. The drawing was used as
the basis for one of Géricault’s twelve lithographs showing London life and
stands out from the other scenes of horse-racing or social commentary. It
is an intimate depiction of middle-class family life, in which the mother
leans protectively over her children. The style suggests that Géricault had
drawn inspiration from the portraits of Sir Thomas Lawrence.
1888,0619.19
Find out more
47
Louis Lafitte (1770-1828)
Portrait of a young man, probably Augustus Pugin at the age of fifteen,
c.1827
Graphite
This sensitive young man is probably Lafitte’s nephew, the future
architect Augustus Pugin. Lafitte’s wife was the sister of Pugin’s father
and the two families visited one another on several occasions. Lafitte had
drawn a portrait of the two-year-old Pugin in 1814 and another of his
mother Catherine in 1815, both of which were given as gifts to the family
and are now in the Victoria & Albert Museum. The present drawing came
from an album of drawings of Lafitte’s friends and family and probably
remained in the artist’s own possession as a keepsake. It is likely that it
dates from 1827, when the fifteen-year-old Pugin and his family again
visited their French relations.
Presented by David Leventhal
1999,0327.1
Find out more
48
Auguste Flandrin (1804–1842/3)
Portrait of a young man, 1832
Watercolour with gum Arabic
Flandrin began his artistic studies at the École des Beaux-Arts in his native
Lyon, alongside his two brothers Hippolyte and Paul, both of whom also
became painters. All three brothers later trained in the studio of Ingres in
Paris, but this portrait dates from shortly before Flandrin’s departure to
work with the great master. Its high finish and colour suggests that it was
probably meant to be displayed, perhaps as a substitute for an oil painting,
which would have been both larger and more expensive. The young sitter
is shown as a man of the world, smartly dressed in the latest fashion and
set in an elegant interior, where a velvet drape half-hides the frame of a
landscape painting, alluding to his cultural interests.
1992,0125.2
Find out more
49
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres (1780–1867)
Madame Ferdinand Hauguet, 1849
Graphite, heightened with white
Jane Lucy Agnes Cole Martin was born in Britain but, after moving to
France with her family, grew up in Rouen. In 1818 she married the French
artist Ferdinand Hauguet, who was both a pupil and a close personal friend
of Ingres. The portrait, which is inscribed with a dedication from Ingres to
Hauguet, shows Jane at the age of 58, seated in a chair with her hands
clasped in her lap and her wedding ring visible on her left hand. It may
have been either a commission or a gift, and its gentle honesty testifies to
the affection the artist felt for his sitter. Although Ingres does not flatter
Jane, he skilfully conveys her warmth and humour through a quirk of her
lips and her smiling eyes.
On long-term loan from a private collection
2014,PDLoan.1
Find out more
50
Octave Tassaert (1800–1874)
A woman in profile with a chignon, c.1850
Black chalk, touches of red chalk
This sensitive portrait of a young woman gives only a brief glimpse of her
features in profile and focuses instead on her elaborately pinned and
twisted hair. Using only black chalk, Tassaert renders the sensual sheen of
the chignon. The identity of the sitter is unknown and she may have been a
model for one of Tassaert’s paintings. He was particularly well known for
his depictions of impoverished women and families, which sought to
expose the inequalities in contemporary society, although some of his
contemporaries found his work rather sentimentalised. This drawing may
blur the line between head study and portrait, but its high level of finish
suggests that it was intended as a work of art in its own right.
1997,0712.114
Find out more
51
Gustave Courbet (1819-1877)
Self-portrait, 1852
Charcoal
Courbet was an almost obsessive self-portraitist, using his own features to
explore a variety of emotional states and different personas. Towards the
end of his life he observed to a friend that, through his self-portraits, ‘I have
written my life’. Here he shows himself at the age of 33, the year after he
had exhibited two paintings to great acclaim in Paris. Robust and selfconfident, he smiles out at the viewer. The drawing has been linked to a
self-portrait painting in Copenhagen, but the painting shows Courbet with a
different hairstyle and shirt. It is more likely, considering the drawing’s
scale and high finish, to have been a work of art in its own right, showing
off Courbet’s skill and confidence in his draughtsmanship.
Presented by the Art Fund, 1925
1925,0711.1
Find out more
52
Felix Fossey (1826–1882)
A man seated in an interior, c.1860
Graphite
A smartly-dressed young man sits in an interior decorated with pictures,
Japanese fans and ornaments. His identity is not known and it is not clear
whether the portrait is a preparatory study for an oil painting or intended to
serve as a work of art in its own right. Fossey, who was a teacher at the
École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, leaves the outer edges of the composition
blank except for a few lines to place the sitter’s lower body. He focuses on
the sitter’s upper body and calm, confident gaze out at the viewer, and the
ornate interior beyond. By including the artworks and exotic fans, Fossey
conveys the sitter’s status as a man of the world: he may have been a
collector, connoisseur or artist.
1993,1106.1
Find out more
53
Théodule Ribot (1823–1891)
The artist’s daughter, c.1867
Watercolour
Ribot was self-taught as an artist and spent the early part of his career as
a jobbing artist in Paris, where he painted signs and window shades, and
coloured lithographs by hand. By the late 1850s he was painting at night
by lamplight, which allowed him to achieve the rich contrasts of light and
dark that he so enjoyed. He was particularly influenced by Rembrandt and
sought to emulate the Dutch master’s expressiveness. His children often
served as his models and this haunting portrait shows his daughter
Désirée-Marie at about ten years old. Her serious face is the only pale
area in a composition of dark clothes, dark eyes and shadowed
background. She herself would later become an artist, changing her name
to Louise- Aimée Ribot.
1991,0615.29
Find out more
54
Henri Fantin-Latour (1836–1904)
Self-Portrait (Study for L’Anniversaire), 1876
Black chalk, squared for transfer, on tracing paper
This, like Pierre Dumonstier’s portrait of Artemisia’s hand, subverts our
expectations of portraiture by showing us the artist from behind. It is a
preparatory study for L’Anniversaire (The Commemoration), a picture
paying homage to the composer Berlioz. Fantin-Latour had heard Berlioz’s
symphony Romeo and Juliet in December 1875 and, within ten days, had
made an oil sketch and was working on a lithograph. He appears at lower
left of the allegorical composition, as Modern Man, leaving a wreath at
Berlioz’s tomb. The oil sketch and lithograph show Modern Man looking to
the side, and this drawing is probably related instead to the large oil
painting which Fantin-Latour painted for the Salon of 1876.
Donated by Henry Van den Bergh
1927,1112.1
Find out more
55
Théobald Chartran (1849–1907)
Paul de Cassagnac, 1879
Graphite, watercolour and bodycolour on blue paper, on the original
mount
Exuding confidence, the political journalist Paul de Cassagnac leans on
the back of his chair and regards his surroundings with a shrewd, worldweary air. At this date, he had been editor of the newspaper Le Pays for
thirteen years. He was a notorious conservative and his vocal and often
belligerent support for the Empire over the Republic led to a sequence of
duels. The portrait is signed with a ‘T’, which indicates that it was one of
several political caricatures produced by Chartran for Vanity Fair. He
supplied the journal with numerous French and Italian subjects and, in
1879 alone, he also sent them caricatures of Verdi, Gounod, Victor Hugo
and Dumas.
1994,0514.17
Find out more
56
Albert Lebourg (1849–1928)
The artist’s wife and mother-in-law, c.1879
Charcoal and graphite, heightened with white
Even in the late 19th century, the ‘manière noire’, with its mezzotint
richness, had a strong appeal for artists. Lebourg was primarily a
landscape painter, who exhibited 30 works at the Fourth Impressionist
Exhibition in 1879, but he also made a series of densely-worked charcoal
drawings, showing figures seen by candlelight. Like Seurat, he was
probably attracted to this technique for its textural and expressive qualities.
Here Lebourg’s wife and her mother read by candlelight, which illuminates
their faces and hands, but leaves the rest of the drawing in velvety
darkness. The portrait emphasises the physical and emotional closeness
of the two women, who lean against one another even as they are
transported by the words of their book.
1978,1007.3
Find out more
57
Marcellin Desboutin (1823–1902)
A young woman wearing a hat, c.1889
Charcoal and graphite
Desboutin was a dramatist, printmaker and painter who, towards the end
of his life, became increasingly linked with the Impressionist movement.
He was friends with Edgar Degas and Edouard Manet and exhibited in
the Second Impressionist Exhibition in 1876. This portrait of an
unidentified young woman wearing a wedding ring and a plumed hat
dates from the later part of his career. Despite its large scale it has an
intense intimacy: the sitter seems to lean forward, almost urgently, into
the viewer’s space as if seated opposite us at a café table. Bristling
stokes of charcoal are softened by smudged lines which help to add
depth to the drawing. The medium gives a similar effect to that achieved
in the etchings and drypoints for which Desboutin was best known as a
printmaker.
2002,0727.1
Find out more
58
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901)
Head of a woman in profile, c.1893
Blue chalk, on buff paper
Toulouse-Lautrec immersed himself in the rich and colourful world of the
Parisian demi-monde, where he found inspiration in the clubs, dancehalls and houses of ill repute. The lady in this portrait is one of the
prostitutes whom he drew in preparation for a series of paintings
showing daily life in a brothel. His portrait is honest, showing his sitter’s
rounded face and pointed nose, but also sympathetic and dignified. This
portrait was used for the central figure in the 1893 painting Au salon,
now in the Guggenheim Museum, New York, and the sitter herself can
be identified in several of Toulouse-Lautrec’s other brothel paintings
made during the next couple of years.
Presented by Campbell Dodgson
1920,0420.16
Find out more
59
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901)
Portrait of Marcelle Lender, c.1893-1895
Black chalk
With red hair, sharp features and a flamboyant personality, the dancer
Marcelle Lender became one of Toulouse-Lautrec’s favourite models. As a
designer of posters, he was particularly drawn to those who had distinctive
features which could be swiftly captured and instantly recognised. He was
so captivated by Lender that he is said to have seen twenty performances
of the operetta Chilperic in 1895, where she played Galswinthe and
famously danced the bolero. This portrait, seen from below, may have
been drawn during one of Lender’s concerts, although it cannot be
connected directly with Chilperic. Toulouse-Lautrec emphasises her stately
glamour and dignity, giving this café-concert star the regal air of a queen.
Presented by César Mange de Hauke
1968,0210.22
Find out more
60
Émile Friant (1863–1932)
A man admiring a painting, 1900
Graphite
This was formerly thought to be a self-portrait of the artist, who in 1900
was 37 years old, but it is clearly not the same man as that seen in Friant’s
painted self-portraits from the same period. Instead it is likely to show a
friend or patron of the artist, who leans sideways in his chair to examine a
canvas. The apparent spontaneity of the pose is belied by the high finish of
the sitter’s face, which points to prolonged careful study. This level of finish
stands in stark contrast to the rest of the drawing, where the sitter’s body is
sketched in with dynamic, loose lines. In juxtaposing the freely-drawn body
and highly-finished face, Friant’s drawing shows the influence of Ingres’s
pencil portrait drawings from a century earlier.
2002,0928.4
Find out more
Table Case 4
Portrait lithographs
by Eugène Carrière
Eugène Carrière (1849–1906) was one of the most original and expressive
printmakers of the 19th century, exploring the qualities of the new printing
method of lithography. This technique allowed the artist to create a print which
directly replicated his own marks drawn onto a lithographic stone and of all
forms of printmaking it came closest to drawing.
Carrière used this method to create an ethereal, smoky aesthetic which also
drew on the textural qualities of mezzotint, in which figures emerge from a
deeply shadowed background. In the print below, the sculptor Auguste Rodin
gazes up at the stretching statue looming over him. In that on the following
page, the art collector and radical journalist Victor Henri Rochefort is illuminated
with a soft, wavering light.
1949,0411.3183 (below) and 1949,0411.3187 (following page)