Portrait of the Sculptor Roland

1797

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

74.5 × 61.3 cm

Status

In Museum Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-136157

Painted in 1797, this half-length portrait depicts the 51-year-old French sculptor Philippe-Laurent Roland (1746–1816), an exact contemporary and longtime friend of the artist, François-André Vincent. Roland is shown from the side with his arm resting casually on the back of his chair and in his hand, he lightly grips an ebauchoir, a tool for working plaster sculpture. His well-worn jacket, waistcoat, and loose shirt with pleated frill, accessorized with the *ebauchoir*, subtly suggest his profession. Roland seems to look back at us confidently, but also as if he were in the middle of a conversation, his mouth slightly parted to reply. Roland’s eye contact and bemused facial expression suggests familiarity like he would have felt with his friend while he was being painted. The 1790s, when this was painted, was a tumultuous time marked by the French Revolution; the king was overthrown and a republic was established, only for the country to fall under the rule of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) shortly after. Despite the political upheaval of this period when many people lost their status or lives, both of these artists managed to adapt and sustain their careers. They had pr…