Carlos Fernando FitzJames-Stuart, Marquess of Jamaica

Carlos Fernando FitzJames-Stuart, Marquess of Jamaica, a Spanish grandee of Stuart descent, appears in this 1765 portrait at the Birmingham Museum of Art. The FitzJames-Stuart family descended from the Duke of Berwick, the illegitimate son of James II of England, creating a fascinating lineage that connected the British and Spanish courts. Drouais"s portrait of this cosmopolitan aristocrat reflects the international nature of his clientele. Drouais was among the most successful portraitists of pre-Revolutionary France, working in the tradition of his father Hubert Drouais and studying under Carle van Loo, Natoire, and Boucher before establishing himself at court.

The Spanish grandee is presented with appropriate dignity, his costume and decorations reflecting his elevated rank in the Spanish nobility. Drouais adapts his French court technique to a foreign sitter whose national traditions of portraiture differed from French conventions. The handling is characteristically precise, with the costume details rendered with care. The palette may reflect Spanish taste as well as French tradition.