Currently not on view
The artist before the easel,
ca. 1835
Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps, French, 1803–1860
x1948-1245
Following his extensive travels throughout the Near East in 1828, Decamps—the first French artist to make such a journey—became known primarily as a romantic painter of Oriental subjects. The indifferent reception his canvases initially received in the Paris Salon, however, tempted him to consider briefly a career as a lithographer and caricaturist. His talent as a clever draftsman and bold colorist are evident in this self-portrait, drawn once Decamps had become confident of his skill.
Information
Title
The artist before the easel
Dates
ca. 1835
Medium
Pastels
Dimensions
34.8 x 25.5 cm (13 11/16 x 10 1/16 in.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Dan Fellows Platt, Class of 1895
Object Number
x1948-1245
Signatures
Signed in red pastel, lower left: DC [possibly partially erased]
Inscription
in graphite, lower left: 19 p. g L- 16 p. 1/2
Culture
Type
Materials
Subject
1926, Vente x, Paris, Hôtel Drouot, February 26, no. 7.
Dan Fellows Platt;
Bequeathed to the Princeton University Art Museum
Self-Portrait
-
Emmanuel Bénézit, Dictionnaire critique et documentaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs, (Paris: Grund, 1950).
, 5, p. 376 - 19th and 20th century French drawings from the Art Museum, Princeton University: an introduction, (Princeton, NJ: Distributed by Princeton University Press, 1972)., pp. 54, 90, cat. no. 14; p. 55 (illus.)
- David B. Cass, In the studio: the making of art in nineteenth-century France: exhibition and catalogue, (Williamstown: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1981). , no. 8
- David B. Cass, Alexandre Gabriel Decamps, 1803-1860: exhibition and catalogue, (Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1984)., cat. no. 27
