Portrait Of A Man In Front Of An Easel, Louis-philippe Period

Portrait of a man in front of an easel
Signed Adolphe Girardot,
oil on paper and ivory marouflée on wood 
Louis-Philippe period, circa 1840
Frame 64x50 cm

Portrait of a young man shown standing, wearing a black suit, a green vest from which a fine gold watch chain protrudes, and a white shirt with bib. He poses in an interior, one hand on his hip and the other leaning on an easel on which appears the sketch of a woman's portrait, probably that of his wife or fiancée.
This composition gives the painting a more personal character than a simple commissioned portrait, and evokes a family or sentimental bond between the models.

This painting uses an unusual technique: oil on paper mounted on panel, with the face and hands painted on ivory. This process, inherited from the art of miniature painting, enables a very fine rendering of skin tones and a great delicacy of expression.
The signature A.Girardot reinforces this reading, the artist being known as a miniaturist. The decorative backdrop, which appears to be an embossed leather screen, and the red drapery give the work a strong presence, while retaining the intimacy typical of Louis-Philippe period portraits.

Antique gilded wood and stucco frame, minor missing parts.