Portret van François Roux omhoog gehouden door een schrijvende vrouw 1720 - 1775

Gottfried August Gründler made this print of François Roux. What does it mean to have your portrait held up by a writing woman? The answer lies in the institutional history of eighteenth-century Europe, and its attitude to education and social status. This print suggests that Roux is worthy of being admired because he is favored by scholarship. The woman, with her classical garb, her quill, and the books in the background, represents learning and the arts. In this period, literacy was a marker of social class, and artistic patronage was used to reinforce status. So, this image suggests that Roux is a learned man, someone whose status deserves to be recognized through portraiture. To find out more, we might consult archives of learned societies and libraries from the period. Approaching this artwork as a historical document helps us understand its significance.