Etienne Aubry

Louis Fournier, Paris;
His sale, Amsterdam, La Grande Salle De Ventes, 24 June 1924, lot 38, reproduced;
C. J. Austin, England;
Mortimer Brandt, New York, c. 1967;
Anonymous sale ('The Property of a Gentleman'), London, Christie's, 20 July 1973, lot 257, reproduced, (as 'Portrait of a man' by Joseph-Siffrein Duplessis), to. Dr. Eisenbeiss on behalf of Dr. Rau;
Bequeathed by Dr. Rau to the Foundation of the German Committee for UNICEF.

Remagen, Arp Museum Bahnhof Rolandseck, Superfranzösisch. Kunstkammer Rau, 16 September 2010 – 27 February 2011.

P. Rosenberg & M. C. Stewart, French Paintings 1500-1825: The Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco 1987, p. 106 under 'Variants', reproduced fig. 1;
L. Hugues, 'Oeuvres inédites d'Etienne Aubry brillant portraitiste à la cour de Louis XV', in L'Estampille: L'objet d'art, 2002, no. 366, p. 32ff;
O. Kornhoff, Superfranzösisch. Kunstkammer Rau, exhibition catalogue, Cologne 2010, pp. 57, 105, reproduced pp. 57 & 105.

This painting has a relatively old relining which is stable. The paint surface is generally well- preserved, if slightly pressed by the relining. Inspection under Ultraviolet light shows two stages of restoration. The first shows the delicate filling in of certain areas of the craquelure, particularly on the left side of the painting and across the sleeve, and to a lesser degree on the right side of the painting. The second consists of small fragments of retouching to the upper right edge of the painting and to the shadowy part of the sitter's face. Other than the aforementioned retouchings, the painting has been relatively untouched. The painting is sold in a later decorative gilt frame, in fairly good condition, with some losses to the gilding.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This is a reduced version of Aubry’s Portrait of Étienne Jeaurat painted circa 1771 and currently on loan to the California Palace of the Legion of Honour from the Roscoe and Margaret Oakes Collection. Remembered primarily as a painter of sentimental genre scenes in the manner of Greuze, Aubry began his career as a portraitist exhibiting at the Salon from 1771 before enrolling as a member of the Académie Royale in 1775. Although his portraits are quite rare they constitute the most original part of his work. He succeeded in producing a number of original and memorable likenesses of his eminent contemporaries, all of which are characterized by a quiet understated elegance. Jeaurat himself was an artist, fellow academician and friend of Aubry’s and he is portrayed as such in a silk damask banyan and linen cap, a mode of dress popular among eighteenth-century artists and men of letters.