Portrait of a Gentleman
1816
Medium
Graphite, with traces of red, on ivory wove paper
Dimensions
20.3 × 15.1 cm (8 × 6 in.)
Classification
graphite
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
114039
Art Historical Context
In the Prints and Drawings department of the Institute of Chicago sits *Portrait of a Gentleman*, delicate 1816 work by British artist and architect George Dance II (1–1825).ed in graphite with subtle traces of red on ivoryove paper, this intimate 20.3 × 15.1 cm (8 × 6 in.) drawing exemplifies the precision of early 19th-century British portraiture during the Regency period. Dance, renowned for economical yet lifelike pencil sketches, often captured the likenesses of contemporaries with remarkable clarity, making this piece a window into the era's refined gentlemanly ideal. The choice of grap...