HENRI-PIERRE DANLOUX | Portrait of a sportsman, full-length, in a landscape with his dog

Galerie Cailleux, Paris;
Sale (Property of a private European collection), Paris, Sotheby's, 27 June 2002, lot 92.

The present portrait dates from Henri-Pierre Danloux's sojourn in England, where he emigrated to in 1791 whilst fleeing the French Revolution. The artist resided there until 1800, overcoming several financial issues. During this period he became one of the principal portraitists of the French émigré nobility with whom he mingled; he apparently received fewer commissions from the English aristocracy, and the majority of his paintings representing English notables have remained anonymous. The physiognomy and costume of our sportsman nevertheless suggest that the model was English. During this period as an emigrant, Danloux was able to deepen his knowledge of British painters and especially to absorb the art of Van Dyck, still a major source of influence in England at that time.