Coulon
Medium
mezzotint and engraving in black on wove paper mounted to brown wove paper
Dimensions
image (irregular): 5.56 × 5.56 cm (2 3/16 × 2 3/16 in.) sheet (trimmed to plate): 6.67 × 6.19 cm (2 5/8 × 2 7/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Corcoran Collection (Gift of William Wilson Corcoran)
Accession Number
2015.19.1584.18.10
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
Step into the refined world of early American portraiture with *Coulon*, a delicate 1801 print by Charles B. J Févret de Saintémin. This French artist, who fled the Revolution to settle in Philadelphia, pioneered small-scale profile portraits using a mechanical device called the physiognotrace. works captured the likenesses of prominent figures during the young United States' formative years, offering an intimate glimpse into Federal-era society. Crafted in mezzotint and engraving on wove paper, this petite image—measuring just over 2 inches square—showcases Saint-Mémin's mastery of tonal sub...
About the Artist
Charles B. J. Févret de Saint-Mémin
**Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin** Born on March 12, 1770, in Dijon, France, to marquis Bénigne-Charles Févret de Saint-Mémin, a former conseiller au Parlement de Bourgogne, and Victoire-Marie de Motmans, a creole from Port-au-Prince, Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin received a military education at the École Militaire in Paris, graduating in 1785. He served as a cad...