Portret van Joseph Barbanègre 1820 - 1822

Alphonse Boilly produced this engraving of Joseph Barbanègre in France during the early 19th century, an era marked by significant social upheaval following the French Revolution. Boilly's choice of subject, a military figure, reflects the militaristic society of post-revolutionary France, and the visual codes of rank, such as the decorated uniform and epaulettes, underscore Barbanègre's status and the values of the new imperial order. But it is vital to ask what public role such an image might play. Was Boilly celebrating the military prowess of the French state, or was he also interested in critiquing it? To fully understand Boilly's intentions, one must delve into the period’s publications and cultural ephemera. Was this image commissioned, and for what purpose? Through such research, we can more clearly grasp the dialogue between the artist, his society, and the institutions that shaped his work. The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.