French school, ca. 1700.
"Portrait of a gentleman.
Oil on canvas. Re-coloured in the 19th century.
Frame of later period.
Measurements: 76 x 59 cm; 83 x 68 cm (frame).
The knight is portrayed with a long bust, with his body turned in three quarters and looking directly to the spectator. Both his erect, disciplined demeanour and his clothing (metal armour, collar with delicate embroidery and a fashionable powdered wig) show all the signs of belonging to the high nobility. The mastery of execution and detailing allows the viewer to appreciate a large number of secondary elements such as the qualities of the armour and the sobriety of his demeanour.
As in the rest of Europe, portraiture became the genre par excellence in French painting during this period, as a consequence of the new social structures that were established in the Western world during this century, embodying the ultimate expression of the transformation in the taste and mentality of the new clientele that emerged among the nobility and the wealthy gentry, who were to take the reins of history during this period. While official circles gave precedence to other artistic genres, such as history painting, and the incipient collectors encouraged the profusion of genre paintings, portraiture was in great demand for paintings intended for the more private sphere, as a reflection of the value of the individual in the new society. This genre embodies the permanent presence of the image of its protagonists, to be enjoyed in the privacy of a studio, in the everyday warmth of a family cabinet or presiding over the main rooms of the house.