Portrait of Le Père Yves
1677
Medium
Engraving; second state of four (BN)
Dimensions
sheet: 9 1/8 x 6 15/16 in. (23.2 x 17.7 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1953
Accession Number
53.601.275
Tags
Art Historical Context
Claude Mellan's *Portrait of Le Père Yves (1677) is a masterful engraving from the late Baroque period, capturing the solemn dignity of its subject—a man likely revered as "Father Yves"—in intricate detail. Created as the second state of four, this print reflects the iterative process engravers used to refine their plates, with each state offering subtle enhancements in line work or shading. Measuring just 9 1/8 x 6 15/16, its compact scale belies the technical virtuosity required to achieve such depth and texture on copper. Mellan, a French engraver active in 17th-century Paris, was celebrat...
About the Artist
Claude Mellan · 1598–1688
Claude Mellan (1598-1688) was a French draughtsman, engraver, and painter who became one of the most innovative printmakers of the French Baroque period. Born in Abbeville to a family of coppersmiths, Mellan rose to become Peintre et Graveur Ordinaire du Roi (Painter and Engraver in Ordinary to the King), achieving recognition for his extraordinary technical mastery. Mellan's artistic significanc...