Description
This portrait of an English woman named Jane Jarvis probably shows her not too long after the death of her father. Her jet black jewels are French, but her low-neck dress, which represents the last stage of the mourning period, could be French or English. With his pastels, Delaroche created a dashingly decorative image that highlights and complements the elaborate dress depicted. The large Renaissance-style hat seems to float against the creamy blues and beiges of the background. Below, the chalky pastel describes the particular appearance of the arms seen through the gauzy material of the sleeves, and energetic stray lines around the body add an ornamental flourish of technical virtuosity.
Provenance
[]
Accession Number
2008.348
Medium
pastel, heightened with white gouache on tan woven paper, mounted to board
Dimensions
Sheet: 46.2 x 34.3 cm (18 3/16 x 13 1/2 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Credit Line
Bequest of Muriel Butkin
Tags
Drawing Neoclassical & Romantic (1751–1850) Pastel Gouache Paper Board French
Background & Context
Background Story
Jane Jarvis from 1830-31 is a portrait by Delaroche in pastel heightened with white gouache—a combination that allows both the tonal subtlety of pastel and the linear precision of gouache highlights. The portrait demonstrates that Delaroche's skill extended beyond the large historical paintings that made his reputation to the intimate medium of portraiture, and the pastel format suggests that he made portraits as private commissions alongside his more public Salon submissions. The 1830-31 date places this in the early years of Delaroche's career, when he was establishing the reputation that would make him the most popular painter in France.
Cultural Impact
Delaroche's pastel portraits are a less studied aspect of his output because they belong to the private sphere of patronage rather than the public sphere of the Salon. Jane Jarvis demonstrates that Delaroche's compositional skill extended to the intimate format of portraiture, and the pastel medium allows a tonal subtlety and coloristic refinement that the larger oil paintings sometimes sacrifice to theatrical effect. The portrait is a reminder that the most popular painter in France also worked in the private sphere of individual patronage.
Why It Matters
Jane Jarvis is Delaroche in private mode: a portrait in pastel and gouache with the tonal subtlety and coloristic refinement that the large historical paintings sometimes sacrifice to theatrical effect. The pastel medium reveals a more intimate side of the painter who was famous for dramatic history scenes.
