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French, 'Portrait of a Boy', before 1810

About the work

Overview

This lively portrait was once wrongly attributed to Jacques-Louis David, but it may be by his assistant Georges Rouget or by one of David’s followers, Baron Gros. The boy’s clothing dates the portrait to around the first 15 years of the nineteenth century. However, his hairstyle allows us to date it more precisely.

In the first decade of the nineteenth century in France both men’s and women’s hairdressing was influenced by Roman sculpture. For men who no longer wore wigs this meant cutting the hair short at the sides and brushing forward the longer hair on top. Early in the decade men wore a straight-cut fringe but by the mid-decade fringes had become more ragged. In this portrait, the boy’s hair is brushed forward but has been carefully cut in tufts to create a more natural and casual effect, so it was probably painted around 1805.

Key facts

Details

Full title
Portrait of a Boy
Artist
French
Date made
before 1810
Medium and support
oil on canvas
Dimensions
55.9 × 42.5 cm
Acquisition credit
Sir Claude Phillips Bequest, 1924
Inventory number
NG4034
Location
Not on display
Collection
Main Collection

About this record

If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.

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