Portrait of a Nobleman
William Gibson
1675–1700
- Medium
- Watercolor heightened with gum arabic on paper
- Dimensions
- 7.5 × 5.9 cm (2 15/16 × 2 5/16 in.); Framed: 9.5 × 6.4 cm (3 3/4 × 2 1/2 in.)
- Genre
- miniature (painting)
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Styles
Tags
paintingblue (color)portraits: male subjectgum arabiceuropean decorative artslaceblueportraitblack (color)fiberwatercolor painting (technique)painting (image making)miniature17th Centurypainting techniquesmanwatercolorbritishminiature paintingportraitseuropean paintingpaper (fiber product)18th Century
About
Portrait miniatures like this one were popular as gifts and keepsakes in 17th-century England. They were mounted under glass in fine metal frames or lockets to be worn close to the body or held in the hand as visual vessels of memory. The dress and hairstyle of this subject were fashionable over 30 to 40 years before the work was painted, indicating that it may be a posthumous copy of an earlier portrait of a beloved family member or an admired person.