Pierre-louis Bouvier: Superb Painted Miniature Portrait Of A Woman. Late 18th - Early 19th Century. Geneva

Magnificent portrait of a woman by the Geneva miniaturist Pierre-Louis Bouvier.

The portrait is that of a woman of quality, represented from the front, looking at the viewer. She is dressed in a black dress. She also wears a white lace headdress revealing her curly hair, separated into two strands. This hairstyle is typical of the very end of the 18th century and the first decade of the 19th century.

The miniature is superb, of great quality and great finesse. The features are very detailed and realistic, the gaze is deep. This portrait exudes a great wisdom and serenity, typical of people who have successfully reached a certain age, carried by the slight smile of this lady.

The painting is signed Bouvier at the bottom right.
Pierre-Louis Bouvier, born in 1765 and died in 1836, is a Swiss miniaturist, draftsman and portrait painter. During the 1780s, he was a student in Paris of Antoine Vestier. A drawing teacher in Geneva, he was also the author of the "Manuel des jeunes artistes et amateurs en peintre".

Schidlof speaks very highly of him as one of the most talented Genevan miniaturists of the early 19th century.

The miniature is in a double-sided gilded metal frame with a bail for hanging it.

The reverse shows a lock of hair, most likely that of the painted lady, on a blue textile background.

Magnificent portrait, by one of the great Swiss miniature painters of the early 19th century. 7 x 6 cm excluding bail
6.4 x 5.3 cm on view

Very good condition. A chip in the glass at the bottom right, and some micro chips in the paint on the upper edge.

Hand-delivered in Paris or sent by insured colissimo.

France: €15
Europe: €20
World: €35