Portrait of Mme M. S. Derviz 1899

Jean-Joseph-Benjamin Constant painted this portrait of Mme M. S. Derviz using oil on canvas, likely in France. It shows a woman adorned in the attire of the upper class. Portraits like these embody the values of the bourgeoisie, a class whose economic and social power expanded greatly throughout the nineteenth century. Artists found a market for their works within this class. These portraits display wealth and status, and served as a means of self-promotion for those who could afford them. Note the pearls, the lace, and the dark velvet of Mme Derviz’s dress. Constant’s work can be understood in relation to institutions like the French Salon, which controlled taste and offered artists official recognition. Artists like Constant used these official channels to advance their careers. However, it is important to consider the ways the Salon and the Academy shaped the kind of art that was valued and made. To gain a deeper understanding of this painting, we can look into the history of fashion, class, and the art market during the period in which Constant was working.