Monsieur Denis-Paul le Pot de la Fontaine

Monsieur Denis-Paul le Pot de la Fontaine appears in this 1772 portrait at the Detroit Institute of Arts, representing the wealthy bourgeois clientele that supplemented Drouais"s royal and aristocratic commissions. By the 1770s, Drouais was the most expensive portrait painter in France, his services sought by anyone who could afford the considerable fees. The Detroit museum"s French painting collection reflects American industrial wealth"s appetite for European old masters.

The bourgeois sitter is presented with the same polished technique Drouais applied to his royal subjects, though the costume and setting may be somewhat less elaborate. The face receives careful individualized treatment, with Drouais balancing flattering presentation with recognizable likeness. The palette follows the conventions of male portraiture—dark clothing, white linen, warm flesh—rendered with characteristic smoothness.