Offered by GSLR Antiques
Early 19th century French school, portrait of a child, a very handsome blond-haired boy with blue eyes, wearing a beige shirt with a wide linen collar. He is leaning against a table, holding a bunch of grapes in each hand. The painting is presented in its original frame, on its original canvas signed on the back by the famous luxury house Alphonse Giroux in Paris. Restoration Empire period, circa 1810-1820.
The excellent craftsmanship of this portrait recalls the work of Jeanne Elisabeth Chaudet. Our painting, although unsigned, is probably by the hand of this talented artist rather than a follower, for everything is perfect: the gracefulness of the whole, the delicacy of the skin texture, the softness and sparkle of the eyes, the play of light and reflection of the grapes.
At first glance, it might appear to be a portrait of the King of Rome, but this hypothesis is directly ruled out by the fact that our child is not wearing the imperial symbols or the Légion d'Honneur. However, the resemblance is no coincidence, but rather a political desire to paint and represent in the manner of Napoleon (many men under the Empire were depicted with their hands in their vests, the Emperor's favorite posture) to show their support for the imperial regime. This leads us to believe that our portrait is more likely to be from the Empire rather than the Restoration period, that of a child of an Empire dignitary, painted by a renowned artist such as Jeanne-Elisabeth Chaudet, having purchased from the best supplier of the time, the house of Alphonse Giroux.
Jeanne-Élisabeth Chaudet, born Gabiou in Paris on January 23, 1767 and died in the same city on April 18, 1832, was a French painter. She was the wife of sculptor Antoine Denis Chaudet (1763-1810), who sculpted busts of Napoleon. After the death of her first husband, Antoine Denis Chaudet, in 1810, Jeanne-Élisabeth Chaudet married the senior civil servant Pierre-Arsène Denis Husson in 1812.
She was related to several female painters, being the sister-in-law of painter Marie-Élisabeth Gabiou; and also a first cousin of Marie-Élisabeth Gabiou and her sisters, Marie-Denise Villers and Marie-Victoire Lemoine.
Alphonse Giroux was one of Paris's most famous tabletterie and cabinetmakers, active from 1799 until the end of the Second Empire. From 1799 to 1848, it operated at 7 rue du Coq Saint Honoré in Paris, under the name of Coq Honoré. This firm specialized in small, high-end furniture for the bourgeoisie and nobility, and also supplied the royal family.
A very fine amateur portrait, ideal for completing a collection of early 19th-century neoclassical furniture.
It is in excellent condition: cleaned painting, on its original canvas without repainting, in its original frame gilded with gold leaf and restored by our gilder.
Frame: 62cm x 54cm
Canvas: 46cm x 38cm
