Lady in Profile

This portrait of a lady in profile, which is typical of Bourgeois’ work, has unfortunately lost some of its original brightness over the course of time. Nevertheless, the profile is sharply carved with a razor and the tender shades stand out brightly against the dark blue foundation. The lady’s curly hair softens the harshness of the bust. In Classicism, portraits in profile became very popular; they were modelled after representations on ancient coins and in reliefs using various painting, drawing and printing techniques, but usually in small formats. Some miniature painters specialized in this field, e.g. Gault, Sauvage, Hipolite and Lagrénée. Bourgeois was a significant advocate of the naturalistic profile portrait. He developed a type of portrait which realistically reproduced the sitter’s shape and simultaneously resembled a relief casting shadows against the dark background, an effect he achieved with a diagonal cut below the sitter’s neck. This surreal combination even increases the artist’s mastery of characterising his sitters, who always give a vivid impression.
B. P.