Self-Portrait
Historical Context
Nicolas de Largilliere's Self-Portrait of 1707 shows the French master at the height of his career as one of Paris's two leading portrait painters (alongside Hyacinthe Rigaud). Largilliere's self-portrait asserts his status as an artist of standing, presenting himself with the dignified confidence of a successful member of the Academie Royale. His self-portraits are important documents of the rising social status of painters in early eighteenth-century France.
Technical Analysis
Largilliere's oil-on-canvas technique in this self-portrait demonstrates his characteristic rich color and fluid brushwork at their most confident. The artist presents himself with warm, luminous flesh painting and the material richness of costume that distinguished his portrait style.
Provenance
Acquired between 1860 and 1910 by comte Alexandre-Marie de Boisgelin [1832-1910], Paris and Château de Beaumont, Beaumont-le-Roger (Eure);[1] by inheritance to his son, comte Georges de Boisgelin [1873-1940], Paris and Château de Beaumont; by inheritance to his son, comte Amaury de Boisgelin [1914-1980]; by inheritance to his widow [née Claudie Février, 1910-2003; in a previous marriage, Madame Pierre Olivier]; presumably by inheritance to her children; (sale, Christie's, Paris, 24 June 2004, no. 88); (Wildenstein & Co., New York); purchased 2 March 2006 by NGA. [1] Joseph Baillio of Wildenstein & Co. was assisted by Professor Dominique Brême, Maitre François de Ricqlès, and comte Édouard de Boisgelin in establishing the painting's provenance. On this branch of the de Boisgelin family, see Louis, marquis de Fraguier, _Une famille parisienne_, Paris, 1963.
See It In Person
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