Self Portrait

1824

Self Portrait, 1824. François LePage (French, 1796–1871). Oil on canvas; framed: 51 x 42 x 4.5 cm (20 1/16 x 16 9/16 x 1 3/4 in.); unframed: 41.3 x 32.8 cm (16 1/4 x 12 15/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Sherman E. Lee in honor of Henry Hawley 2004.17 François LePage belonged to a family of flower painters and worked in the French city of Lyon, which was famous for producing silk, particularly fabric with flower motifs. Flower painting was a specialty associated with the Lyon school of painting, and is a subject that requires both delicacy and dexterity, both of which are highlighted in this small self-portrait. In this self-portrait, Le Page is painting his specialty: flowers.