Portrait of Jean-Baptiste de Boissieu with a Necktie, ca. 1781

About the Work

Modelled with soft chalk, the face of the artist’s younger brother – the physician Jean-Baptiste Louis de Boissieu (1739–1812) – radiates sensuality and élan. In keeping with the modern conception of art championed by the artist’s friend Greuze, the sitter is shown as a “citoyen” – a self-confident, emancipated citizen.