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French artist Jacques-Louis David painted this portrait of his uncle Francois Buron in 1769, one of his earliest known works. The oil on canvas measures 65 by 54 centimeters and shows Buron, an important eighteenth-century French civil servant, in a dignified pose.
David was only about twenty years old and still training when he painted this portrait. He would go on to become the leading figure of Neoclassicism, a movement emphasizing clarity, order, and harmony inspired by ancient Greek and Roman art. His later major works include "The Death of Marat" and "Napoleon Crossing the Alps."
The painting remained with Buron's descendants until 1903, passing through several sales before reaching a private collection in New York in 1985. This early work demonstrates David's natural gift for portraiture that he would develop alongside his grand historical compositions.
Other masterpieces from the Neoclassicism movement

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, 1814
Louvre, Paris, Paris

Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, 1783
Château de Versailles, Versailles, Versailles

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, 1862
Louvre, Paris, Paris

Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, 1782
National Gallery, London

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Musée Ingres, Montauban, Montauban

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Musée Condé, Chantilly, Chantilly

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Louvre, Paris, Paris

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
Musée Ingres, Montauban, Montauban
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