Antique Miniature Painting of French Woman Doing Embroidery with Loom, Gutta Percha Frame

Antique Miniature Painting of French Woman Doing Embroidery with Loom, Gutta Percha Frame

I recently listed a miniature painting of a woman at a yarn loom, and here we have another equally unique, with the woman shown at her embroidery frame. RARE to find images! It is amazing to me, time after time, to see the incredible detail the 17th through early 19th century portrait miniaturist artists were able to achieve in paintings so small. Portraits in miniature fascinate! They represent one of two categories, overall: 1. 18th to 19th century paintings done 'apres' or after the work of famous artists, small copies painted by other artists as souvenirs for the early Grand Tour traveler, and 2. 12th century through 19th century, the commissioned portrait of a person, living or dead, whose likeness will be painted by hand on a thin wafer (or perhaps a panel of wood or metal), as the perfect likeness of that person. Since the one of a kind true portraiture pre-dates early photography which was only invented c.1838, almost all portrait miniatures predate that era, and would be commissioned by the wealthy, positioned or titled. Napoleon was one of the earliest leaders who understood fully the power of the triumphant image as propaganda - essentially, advertising, and his reputation grew both from reality and from the proliferation of paintings and prints, large and small of his triumphs, spread far and near. Josephine was said to have traveled widely, as well, and handed out small paintings of herself and of Napoleon. But for most, these paintings will represent the single image of the person that survives through time, often without ID, without the memory or story of their life. We love all forms of the portraits and paintings in miniature, and will be listing a large collection of them here, the brief description of which will follow:

The second of 2 miniature paintings showing 1700s to 1800s French lady at her sewing or needlework, this one shows the wonderful French embroidery stand (which type we also have a few of for sale, listed separately), practicing that most female art, needlework. We don't know if she's doing silk embroidery or if its needlepoint, or embroidering panels to be incorporated into clothing, but we do know that finding images of women sewing are quite rare, as are those showing musical instruments being used, other accoutrement of daily life. Since portrait miniatures were mostly a luxury, we do know our seamstress is a woman of means and isn't doing the sewing as a profession, or at least we might assume it. The thin natural wafer it's painted upon is typical of the type and genre and were not in use after about 1840s so we can date our image as 1850 or earlier. The gutta percha that comprises the rather rare frame into which the image has been housed is a mid-1800s forerunner of today's plastics, more or less, and was predominantly used in early photography as frame, or Union case for daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, and also in some items like boxes or tops of cigar chests (the detail of the castings being quite fine). Between the two aspects, we are sure this is a mid-1800s painting, and frame is of substantial value on its own as a fine antique, as well, and of higher quality and value than many of the wooden alternatives used in France for portrait miniatures in this era.

Very good to excellent in all aspects, from the quality and condition of the thin wafer to the fine condition of the gutta percha frame. No chips or damage to either one. The cover glass is original and in place. We peeled back the fabric backing to access the wafer so it could be scanned for finer detail. You see that the artist has even put those wingnuts on the tiltable needlework frame - as well as the turned wood. I love the fine detail in these tiny paintings! Signed by the artist, whose name is not familiar to me. We've shown the signature. If you are an expert and you recognize this name and see I've interpreted it wrong, please email. Thank you.

Item ID: 1112pmloom

$1,095 USD SALE PENDING

This item is Pending a Sale so cannot be purchased at this time.