ANTOINE VESTIER (1740-1824)
Portrait miniature of a Gentleman, wearing blue coat with a white stock, his hair powdered and worn 'en queue' with black solitaire
circa 1780s
Watercolour on ivory (licence NPZKU7EU)
Oval, 33 mm (1 ⅓ in) high
Gold bracelet clasp frame with rose gold and yellow gold decoration, the former shaped as roses and the latter shaped as leaves
£2,500
Vestier’s most successful period was spent in France, where from the 1780s onwards he exhibited at the Salon de Correspondence (1782) and the Salon of the Louvre (from 1785). He was an associate, then a member, of the Académie Royale, and from there he was made painter to King Louis XVI (in 1788).
The gentleman in this portrait is anonymous, though his dress dates him to the latter half of the 1780s, when the overly elaborate styles of the 1770s had subsided, though before the more distinct and symbolic fashions of the 1790s (and therefore of the French Revolution).
By the time of the revolution, Vestier’s client base had thinned significantly, as aristocratic sitters had been forced to flee France, and it was difficult to find custom amongst revolutionaries, who were more likely to see miniature painting as an art form associated with the ancien régime. By the 1790s, he was struggling to support himself with the vocation, writing that “What I earn is just enough to live from hand to mouth … I paint for myself; the works will be sold as soon as possible.”. He continued to work and live well into the nineteenth century, however, and died in Paris on Christmas Eve in 1824.
[1] From a letter dated February 4, 1791, published in Passez, Anne-Marie. Adélaïde Labille-Guiard: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, Paris, 1973, p. 51.
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Some stock items contain materials from endangered species which are governed by CITES regulations and will require a permit to export outside of Great Britain. If a certificate of export is required then this will be the responsibility of and paid for by the buyer .
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The item added to cart contains materials from endangered or protected species. The Limner Company cannot arrange for the delivery of artworks containing ivory,
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shipping TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Worldwide shipping is included in all prices.
The Limner Company does not accept any responsibility for import duty, this is to be paid by the buyer.
See Section 7.5 in Terms & Conditions for information on export/import regulations.
Please contact us to discuss shipping options.
Some stock items contain materials from endangered species which are governed by CITES regulations and will
require a permit to export outside of Great Britain. If a certificate of export is required then this will be
the responsibility of and paid for by the buyer.
See Section 7.5 in Terms & Conditions for information on export/import regulations.
Please contact us to discuss shipping options.
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