Portret van Gilles Boileau
1658
Medium
engraving
Dimensions
343; 253
About this artwork
plaatrand: hoogte 343 mm x breedte 253 mm
Art Historical Context
Behold Robert Nanteuil's *Portret van Gilles Boileau* (1658), a engraving that captures the elegance of 17th-century French portrait. Measuring 343 mm in height and mm in width—substantial dimensions for a print its era—this work depicts Boileau, likely notable figure from the intellectual official circles of Louis XIV early reign. Nante, a leading French engr (1623–1678 produced this piece at height of his career, renowned for his ability to translate the subtleties of oil paintings into intricate prints. Engraving, Nanteuil's chosen medium, involved meticulously inc lines into a copper pla...
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...