Portrait de Jean-François Berthelier (1830-1888), chanteur

Carolus-Duran's 1877 portrait of Jean-François Berthelier, the opera singer and actor known as a comedian at the Palais-Royal, documents another figure from the world of Parisian entertainment that he portrayed regularly alongside his aristocratic commissions. Berthelier was a popular performer known for his comic roles, and the contrast between Carolus-Duran's aristocratic portrait manner and the lighthearted career of his subject creates an interesting tension. The Musée Carnavalet holds this within its collection of portraits documenting Parisian cultural life — the museum's mission of recording the city's history encompasses its performers alongside its politicians and social figures.

Carolus-Duran's confident, loaded-brush technique gives the portrait its characteristic vivacity — the direct method that he taught Sargent creates a sense of immediate presence rather than labored construction. The singer's face would be rendered with particular attention to the expression and animation that characterizes a performer.