Artwork
Jean Salomon Fazi
Jean Salomon Fazi is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin. It dates from 1800 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art. This 1800 portrait is a black mezzotint and engraving printed on wove paper, later mounted onto a brown wove backing.
About this work
Overview
This 1800 portrait is a black mezzotint and engraving printed on wove paper, later mounted onto a brown wove backing. The image presents Jean Salomon Fazi, rendered with precise tonal contrasts against a uniform dark field. Inscriptions run along the lower margin, identifying the sitter and providing contextual information typical of early‑19th‑century portrait prints.
Subject & Meaning
The sitter, Jean Salomon Fazi, is depicted with a pronounced nose and tightly curled hair, attire that includes a high‑collared coat and a white cravat. The straightforward background focuses attention on his facial features and dress, suggesting a formal representation intended to convey status and personal identity rather than narrative content.
Technique & Style
The work combines mezzotint’s soft gradations with the linear precision of engraving, allowing the artist to model flesh tones while retaining crisp detail in clothing and hair. Executed entirely in black, the print exploits the tonal range of the medium, and the mounting on brown paper adds a subtle tonal border that frames the image.
History & Provenance
Created by Charles B. J. Févret de Saint‑Mémin, a noted French portraitist, the print was produced in the post‑Revolutionary period when demand for affordable likenesses grew. The presence of identifying inscriptions indicates it was likely issued as a commercial portrait, circulated among patrons familiar with Fazi’s professional standing.
Context
Portrait prints of the early 1800s served both documentary and decorative purposes, bridging the gap between painted portraiture and emerging mass‑produced images. The high‑collared coat and cravat reflect contemporary fashion in France and its territories, situating Fazi within the social milieu of the Napoleonic era.
Artist & collection
Artist
Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin
Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin (French pronunciation: ; 1770–1852) was a French portrait painter and museum director.
