Self-portrait Holding an Academic Study

This self-portrait by Luis Egidio Meléndez, painted in 1746, shows the artist half-length, turned three-quarters to the right yet with his face toward the viewer. He wears a dark frock coat, a white shirt with frilled collar and cuffs, and a blue cloth draped over him to protect his clothing; a kerchief ties back his dark hair. With his left hand he pinches the large sheet of white paper bearing an academic drawing, its right edge curling slightly inward, as if presenting it to us. The signature appears to sit in the lower left corner of the paper. The plain green background keeps attention on the figure. The work belongs to Meléndez's early years at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, where he won first prize in 1745, and to his training under Louis-Michel van Loo. The frilled shirt reflects French Rococo fashion, and the frontal pose recalls Van Loo's portraits. It is also one of the few known likenesses of the artist and the first work he signed, conveying the pride of a young painter who would later become famous for still lifes.

Painter

Luis Egidio Meléndez

Date

1746

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Dimensions

100 × 82 cm

Museum

Louvre Museum, Paris

Genre

self-portrait

Depicts

painter, palette, Luis Egidio Meléndez, man, drawing

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