Portrait of C.-F. du Perier Dumouriez 1780 - 1827

Editor: So, this is Jean-Baptiste-François Bosio’s "Portrait of C.-F. du Perier Dumouriez," created sometime between 1780 and 1827. It looks like a drawing or maybe a print. I'm struck by the detail in the general's uniform. How do you interpret this work? Curator: I see this print primarily as a product of its time. The meticulous detail of Dumouriez’s attire signifies the rise of a meritocratic military class following the upheavals in France. It’s about the labor that went into producing that image - both the physical toil of the artist, and Dumouriez's efforts in gaining his status reflected in his very tailored garments. Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't thought about the connection to labor. The style definitely evokes Neoclassicism to me with the rather crisp figure against the vague landscape backdrop, with some academic elements. Curator: Exactly! Consider the context: This was during a period obsessed with control, order and categorization of knowledge. Even the landscape behind him is less about the freedom of nature, and more of stage setting, to display the General. The print itself, then, becomes a commodity; reproduced, sold, and consumed by a public eager for symbols of stability and authority. How does this sit with you? Editor: I can see that. So, the print isn't just about the individual, but about replicating and distributing a certain ideology. Curator: Precisely. This work, viewed through a materialist lens, pushes us to think beyond aesthetic appreciation and towards an examination of production and social influence in 18th-century France. Editor: I see what you mean. It makes me think about who had access to these prints, and how they shaped public opinion. Curator: And that shifts our appreciation. The artist's labor is only the beginning, not the end. Editor: Well, I’ll certainly think differently about portraits going forward! Thanks for shedding some light on the means of production.