Portret van Karel Lodewijk Napoleon Bonaparte, president van de Franse Repuliek 1848 - 1852

Nicolas Maurin created this lithograph of Charles-Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, later Napoleon III, which captures the then president of the French Republic. The portrait’s subdued color scheme and Bonaparte’s composed posture exude a sense of calm authority. However, it is the detailed rendering of textures that captures the eye, from the soft curls of Bonaparte's hair to the intricate patterns of his garments and the book he rests his hand upon. Maurin masterfully uses the graphic medium to create tonal modulations that model form and give volume. The close attention to texture and pattern suggests a concern with the material and the surface, engaging questions about representation and reality. Bonaparte's carefully arranged attire also subtly hints at the performance of power and the construction of an identity. The formal qualities of this lithograph thus invite us to consider the complex interplay between surface and depth, representation and power, that characterized the period.