FLORENTINO DECRAENE (Tournai, 1793-Madrid, 1852)
"Portrait of a Gentleman, circa 1820.
Gouache on vellum.
It has an old frame with damage on the back.
Signed in the lower area.
Size: 3,7 x 3 cm; 4,5 x 4,5 cm (frame).
Portrait of a gentleman signed by Florentino Decraene, who began his artistic education with his father, although he later continued his training under the orders of Piat-Joseph Sauvage (1744-1818), widely known at the French court for his contact with Louis XVI. He went on to study at the Academy of Tournai. In 1820 he moved to Paris where he opened a lithographic studio. When the Florentine business did not prosper, he moved at the behest of José de Madrazo, the first curator of the royal collections, and produced a series of lithographs based on paintings from the Spanish royal collections. He was subsequently appointed painter to Queen Isabella II in 1849 and became the court's most famous miniaturist.
Miniature portraits developed in Europe from the 16th century onwards. They consisted of small paintings set in objects such as medallions, table clocks or small boxes. The frame of these portraits was usually oval or circular. They were executed in a wide variety of techniques, such as oil on copper, pewter or ivory, gouaches on parchment or cardboard and, from the 18th century, watercolour on ivory. This delicate art was gradually lost from the second half of the 19th century, in parallel with the development of photography.