Spanish school; second half of the 18th century.
"Portrait of a gentleman.
Oil on canvas. Re-drawn.
It presents faults and repainting.
Measurements: 84 x 69 cm; 96 x 80 cm (frame).
We see in this canvas a male portrait of neoclassical heritage, with a firm drawing, expressive and controlled, and softly nuanced chromatism, especially in the face, where he models the features with great efficiency. It is an energetic face, a reflection of the sitter's personality. The man wears a suit in the fashion of the time, with a dark jacket and a white shirt with a high collar. Following the models established by the portrait painters of the time, the sitter is in the foreground against a neutral background, portrayed bust-length and slightly turned with his face completely turned towards the viewer.
As in the rest of Europe, in the 18th century portraiture became the leading genre par excellence in Spanish painting as a consequence of the new social structures, embodying the maximum expression of the transformation in the taste and mentality of the new bourgeois clientele. This genre embodies the permanent presence of the image of its protagonists, to be enjoyed in the intimacy of a studio, in the daily warmth of a family cabinet or presiding over the main rooms of the house.