Portrait in miniature "aprés" a full-sized portrait by Jean-Marc Nattier (17 March 1685 – 7 November 1766) a very famous French painter. He was born in Paris, the second son of Marc Nattier (1642–1705), a portrait painter, and of Marie Cortois (1655–1703), a miniaturist. He is noted for his portraits of the ladies of King Louis XV's court in classical mythological attire. Nattier portraits were wildly popular, and miniaturists copied many as Grand Tour souvenirs for wealthy patrons of the arts. This very adeptly rendered miniature would be one of those. Not by Nattier, but by an excellent artist copying Nattier's work. The subject of this painting is a fellow artist, contemporary of Nattier, Louis Tocqué. The copyist has taken liberty to remove the lower part of the original painting which is his easel and paintbrushes, leaving just the elegantly completed bust. The artist who has so beautifully captured Nattier's painting has signed, "M. Lefevre Collay".
Very good to excellent condition throughout. Oil on wafer rather than gouache. No chips, no flaws. I was able to take it out of frame to photograph without the glares of the convex cover glass, and to capture the stunning blending of color from this talented artist. I must say, I actually prefer it to the original by the more famous Nattier. Measurements are noted on our photos. Large at 3 1/8" diameter, it is nicely housed beneath the original 19th century convex cover glass.
