Portrait d'Alexandrine de Bleshamps

Alexandrine de Bleschamp was the wife of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon's elder brother, who would become King of Naples and later King of Spain. As a member of the extended Bonaparte family, she occupied a position of exceptional political significance, and her portrait by Fabre—held at the Musée Fesch in Ajaccio, a collection founded by Cardinal Joseph Fesch, Napoleon's maternal uncle—situates the work within the tightly woven network of Bonapartist family patronage. Fabre's Florentine studio made him a convenient choice for Italian-based members of the imperial family seeking portraits from a painter of impeccable academic credentials. The undated work likely falls within Fabre's most productive portrait period, roughly 1795–1815. It exemplifies how portrait commissions under the Empire served simultaneously as personal likenesses and political instruments, reinforcing dynastic cohesion through the circulation of family images across the Empire's constituent kingdoms.

Oil on canvas with the warm, even lighting and smooth flesh modelling typical of Fabre's mature portrait style. The treatment of the sitter's dress and jewellery would have been of particular importance given the imperial context, requiring precise differentiation of silk, satin, and precious stones through controlled glazing techniques.