Portrait of an aristocrat, 18th century French school

Mid-18th century French school, ceremonial portrait of a gentleman in his library. Richly dressed in a silk suit and taffeta robe, our erudite and elegant aristocrat poses with his passion for science and the arts: leaning against a gilded wooden console, he poses under a velvet canopy. In the background, we recognize the decor of an architectural library with columns, shelves of books and a globe. A red chalk drawing of a woman lies carelessly on the embroidered tablecloth covering the console. To the left, a fine gilded wood stool in the Rococo style. Oil on canvas, presented in a rich Rocaille-style frame in wood and stucco gilded with gold leaf. 18th century, circa 1750-60 for the canvas, 19th century for the frame.

Our aristocrat is certainly of high birth, given the red heels on his shoes, which make him a man of the court: the Académie Française dictionary tells us that "Talon rouge was once said of a man of the court who had red heels on his shoes, which was a mark of nobility. The red heels of Versailles. It's a red heel. Today, it's used colloquially to describe someone who has pretensions to elegance and good manners. He's very red-heeled. Red heel manners."

A superb portrait, a perfect illustration of what Talleyrand called the "douceur de vivre" of the Ancien Régime. In addition to its qualities as an illustration of the refinement of high society at the time, our painting stands out for the high quality of its execution: scrupulous painting in the details of the furniture and decor, brilliant colors, no error in proportions, delicate face and perfectly rendered complexion. Unfortunately, at this stage of our research, we have not found an attribution for the painter.

Excellent condition: cleaned and very well preserved. It has been previously re-stained. The gilding on the 19th-century frame is superb.

Dimensions 75.5 x 90cm
Canvas size 62.1 x 78.2cm