Portrait de Forain (Portrait of Forain)
Medium
etching on wove paper
Dimensions
image: 11.9 × 8.9 cm (4 11/16 × 3 1/2 in.) plate: 13.4 × 10.3 cm (5 1/4 × 4 1/16 in.) sheet: 41.9 × 28.6 cm (16 1/2 × 11 1/4 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.3825
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
Jean-Louis Forain created this intimate self-portrait in 1912 as an etching on wove paper. The small image, measuring just under five by three-and-a-half inches, reveals the artist’s face with quiet directness, inviting viewers to how he chose to present himself at this stage of his career. As both subject and maker, Forain demonstrates the personal nature of printmaking, where the artist works directly on the plate to capture expression and character. Etching allows for delicate lines and subtle tonal variations that translate well to the textured surface of wove paper. The generous margins on the larger sheet suggest the print was intended for careful viewing and perhaps for inclusion in a collector’s portfolio. This work now resides in the National Gallery of Art’s Rosenwald Collection, where it joins other fine examples of early twentieth-century printmaking that highlight technical skill and individual vision.
About the Artist
Jean-Louis Forain · 1852–1931
Jean-Louis Forain was born Louis Henri Forain on October 23, 1852, in Reims, France, to a family of modest means; his father painted ornamental signs. The family relocated to Paris when he was eight, where young Forain developed a passion for drawing inspired by the sculptures of Reims Cathedral and the masters at the Louvre, which he began copying at age fourteen. He received drawing lessons from...