Portret van Pascal Paoli

About this artwork

Pascal Paoli, generaal en leider van de Corsicanen.

Art Historical Context

This portrait of Pascal Paoli, rendered on paper by the Dutch artist Rienk Jelgerhuis between 1755 and 1806, captures the likeness of one of the 18th century’s most celebrated champions of liberty. Paoli served as general and leader of the Corsican people during their struggle for independence from Genoese and later French rule. Known for his enlightened ideals and military resolve, he became a symbol of republican virtue across Europe, admired by figures such as Voltaire and influencing later revolutionary movements. Jelgerhuis, working primarily in the Netherlands, specialized in portraiture that blended careful observation with a sense of dignity. Executed on paper, the work likely served as a preparatory drawing or an intimate study rather than a large-scale oil painting, allowing for a more personal and immediate connection to the sitter. At roughly 32 by 22 centimeters, its modest scale suggests it was intended for private contemplation or reproduction. Today the drawing offers visitors a window into the transnational fascination with Paoli’s cause, reminding us how images helped spread Enlightenment ideas of freedom well beyond Corsica’s shores.

About the Artist

Rienk Jelgerhuis · 1729–1806

Rienk Jelgerhuis (1729–1806) was a prolific Dutch portrait painter, engraver, and draftsman whose extraordinary productivity—producing no fewer than 7,763 documented portraits during his career—made him one of the most industrious portraitists of the eighteenth-century Netherlands. Born in the Frisian capital of Leeuwarden and dying in Amsterdam, Jelgerhuis built his reputation as an itinerant por...