Portrait of a Boy
Prévost was a prolific printmaker, often collaborating with Charles Nicolas Cochin on projects like Diderot and d’Alembert’s Encyclopédie, for which he engraved the frontispiece. Only twelve or so drawings are known and seem to be mostly portraits. His refined handling of gray wash allowed him to endow his sitters with an uncanny naturalism.
The identity of the boy depicted here is unknown, but from the inscription we know that it was drawn in 1795 in Canettecourt, a small village north of Paris.His clothing, a dark jacket with a large lapel and a white cravat, corresponds to the revolutionary fashion of that period, as does his bluntly cut unpowdered hair.
The identity of the boy depicted here is unknown, but from the inscription we know that it was drawn in 1795 in Canettecourt, a small village north of Paris.His clothing, a dark jacket with a large lapel and a white cravat, corresponds to the revolutionary fashion of that period, as does his bluntly cut unpowdered hair.
Artwork Details
- Title: Portrait of a Boy
- Artist: Bonaventure Louis Prévost (French, Paris 1733–1816)
- Date: 1795
- Medium: Brush and gray wash
- Dimensions: Sheet: 8 7/8 × 6 1/2 in. (22.5 × 16.5 cm)
Image: 6 7/8 × 5 1/2 in. (17.5 × 14 cm) - Classification: Drawings
- Credit Line: Charles Z. Offin Fund, 2024
- Object Number: 2024.306
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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