Head of a boy

This bust-length painting of a plump-faced child, seen at three-quarter view, wearing a simple white collar and a loose-fitting velvet jacket is not a portrait, but represents a new ideal and archetype of childhood that developed in France in the eighteenth century. The Enlightenment in France brought about a revolution in thinking about infant development, propelled by the publication in 1762 of a book Emile: or On Education by Geneva-born philosopher and novelist, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778). This wildly popular ‘novel’ promoted the idea that children should spend their early formative years living unrestricted and close to nature, free to develop both physically and morally away from the ills of society.

Spanning the period of Emile’s greatest impact, the painters François Boucher (1703-1770) and Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725-1805) and their contemporaries produced numerous images of infants that promoted Rousseau’s idea of early childhood as a distinct and precious phase, in which freedom and nature play a vital role. While the author of this head has not been identified, Rousseau’s influence can be seen in the rendering of the child’s face and clothes. Full cheeks and a fresh complexion signify wholesome nutrition and fresh air, while soft and loose-fitting clothes allow the freedom of movement necessary for the development of strong bones. The thatch of riotous, uncut curls indicates the child is exempt from adult conventions and his charmingly bright glance and slightly-turned head indicate his alert mental state and general readiness to see, hear and learn.

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