Portrait Of A Gentleman C.1715; Circle Of Hyacinth Rigaud (1659-1743)

The nobleman in this portrait is shown with the grandiloquence characteristic drapery of Rigaud's portraits. Painted circa 1715 the subject is portrayed wearing an elaborate brocaided jacket with large embroidered cuffs under a sumptuous velvet wrap. His long powered and parted wig, immensely costly at the time, has been neatly tied into a knot at the bottom. The bravura handling of the draperies and the colour combination is superb and the image illustrates the artist's virtuosic handling of material and consummate skill. The influence of Rigaud and his elegant portraits, known for there solidity and layout that dramatised the fabrics, is undeniable. At the time of writing, we also have the pendant to this portrait (portrait of a lady) available for sale. Rigaud is considered one of the most famous portrait painters of the French classical period. A portrait of the Duc de Broglie (1671-1745) from Rigaud’s circle achieved $37,000 at a New York auction in 2008. His patrons where amongst the richest circles of both French and European society – royalty, the bourgeois, financiers, nobles, industrialists, and ministers. He was court painter to the French royal family and his oeuvre includes an almost complete gallery of the leaders of the kingdom of France between 1680 and 1740. Many foreign princes on their ‘Grand Tour’ wanted to take with them a souvenir of France and especially their portraits by Rigaud. By some accounts it is estimated that over 1000 individuals sat for him. In 1702 he was appointed professor at the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in Paris and then Professor in 1710. He had a successful workshop and took on many pupils and was active right up to his death in 1743. Measurements: Height 99cm, Width 82cm framed (Height 39”, Width 32.25” framed)