Self-Portrait

When this portrait of a young gentleman became a part of the Tansey Collection, it was thought to show Mansion’s teacher Isabey. According to recent research,however, it is a self-portrait by Mansion. This conclusion is based on a comparison of this picture with a small self-portrait in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Nancy¹ showing the miniaturist roughly five years earlier. The sitter’s posture, his features, curly hairstyle, long sideburns and dark brown coat are identical in both portraits. However, the picture in Nancy is considerably smaller and shows the sitter in front of an extensive landscape, whereas the large format of the portrait in the Tansey Collection gave the artist more freedom to elaborate the details: the flesh parts are delicately and colourfully modelled and the transition from light to shade is painted softly.The sitter’s eyes have a calm and thoughtful expression which gives intensity to the picture. Mansion did not exhibit his self-portrait in the annual Salon exhibition but kept it in his studio where it was copied by his students.

B. P.