Boy with a Black Spaniel
ca. 1767
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
Oval, 25 3/8 x 21 in. (64.5 x 53.3 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Jules Bache Collection, 1949
Accession Number
49.7.48
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
In this oval portrait, a young boy with soft curls of fair hair looks directly outward with a gentle expression. He wears a brown coat with prominent buttons and lace trim at the collar and cuffs, and he cradles a small black spaniel close to his chest. The dog’s dark, glossy coat contrasts with the boy’s lighter clothing and the muted, dark background, while the smooth brushwork highlights the textures of fabric, lace, and fur under soft, even lighting. François Hubert Drouais painted Boy with a Black Spaniel in oil on canvas around 1767. The work belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s European Paintings collection and entered the museum as part of the Jules Bache Collection in 1949. Such portraits often celebrated the quiet companionship between children and their pets, presenting them with warmth and natural detail that still invites close looking today.
About the Artist
François Hubert Drouais · 1727–1775
He was a fashionable portraitist. He is best known for portraits of children and one of Mme de Pompadour from 1763, completed after her death. Comment on works: Portraits