Portrait of a Child

This Portrait of a Child from around 1765 demonstrates Greuze's mastery of child portraiture, a genre that bridged his work between formal commissions and the expressive heads that were his commercial specialty. The natural, unaffected pose captures the spontaneity of childhood that contemporary viewers found deeply appealing. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays theatrically posed figures, expressive faces registering emotion with unsubtle directness, a palette ranging from Rococo pastels in early works to colder, more sober tones after the Revolution.

Warm, luminous flesh tones and a softly focused background create an intimate atmosphere, with the child's features rendered with the tender precision characteristic of Greuze's best work.