Portretbuste van kunstenaar en architect Pierre Paul Puget 1818 - 1848

Jacopo Bernardi made this portrait bust of Pierre Paul Puget, the famed artist and architect, using graphite and wash on paper. Bernardi’s delicate rendering captures the formal qualities of sculpture, while the choice of Puget, who died about a century before this work was made, invites us to consider the idea of artistic legacy. The idea of artistic genius emerged in Europe in the Renaissance. By the 19th century, when Bernardi made this drawing, the figure of the artist was one of great cultural importance. Artists like Puget were seen to embody the values of individualism and imagination. As art academies and museums emerged, the question of who merited inclusion became more important than ever. The institutionalization of art history contributed to the notion of a canon of great artists, disproportionately white and male. As historians, it is important to examine the social and institutional contexts that shape artistic production and reception. Through archival research and critical analysis, we can explore how art reflects and reinforces existing power structures.