Charles Faure

Art Historical Context

Step into the elegant world of 17th-century French portraiture with Robert Nanteuil's *Charles Faure* (ca. 1648), a masterful engraving from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints collection. Nanteuil, one of the era's premier engravers, captured the likeness of Charles Faure—a notable figure of his time—in this intimate sheet measuring just 4 9/16 × 3 1/4 inches. Produced during Louis XIV's early reign, the portrait reflects the growing fascination with individualized likenesses among intellectuals and courtiers, disseminated through prints to reach a broader audience beyond oil paintings. This rare first state of two, as cataloged by Petitjean and Wickert, showcases Nanteuil's extraordinary technique: fine, precise lines that convey texture, expression, and depth with remarkable subtlety. Engraving, involving etching lines into a copper plate for inked impressions, allowed for detailed reproductions that rivaled paintings in fidelity. Nanteuil's style, rooted in the Baroque emphasis on realism and grandeur, influenced generations of printmakers and elevated portrait prints to high art. Gifted to the Met in 2000 by Lev Tsitrin, this gem highlights how 17th-century prints bridged elite portraiture with public appreciation, preserving faces and status across time. A testament to technical innovation and cultural prestige!

About the Artist

Robert Nanteuil · 1623–1678

Robert Nanteuil (1623-1678) was a French portrait engraver, draughtsman, and pastellist who became the preeminent portraitist to the court of Louis XIV. His technical mastery and royal patronage fundamentally transformed the status of engraving in France, elevating it from a mechanical craft to a recognized fine art. Nanteuil stands as the outstanding French portrait engraver of the seventeenth c...