The Bust of Nicolas Poussin is a marble portrait bust by the Flemish sculptor François Duquesnoy. Nicolas Poussin was a close friend of Duquesnoy, and the leading classicist painter in 17th-century French art, although he spent most of his working life in Rome.
| Bust of Nicolas Poussin | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | François Duquesnoy |
| Year | c. 1630 |
| Type | Sculpture |
| Medium | Marble |
| Subject | Nicolas Poussin |
| Dimensions | 70.5 cm × 51.5 cm (27.7 in × 20.3 in) |
| Location | Bode Museum, Berlin |
| 52°31′19″N 13°23′41″E / 52.52194°N 13.39472°E | |
Both Poussin's and Duquesnoy's visions were at odds with the mainstream Baroque style of artists such as Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Pietro da Cortona.[1] The portrait sculpture was completed in the 1630s, and is currently housed at the Bode Museum in Berlin.[2]
Sculpture
Duquesnoy was a close friend of a number of prominent artists in Rome; among these was Poussin. The two artists even shared a house in 1626.[3]
Duquesnoy produced a small bust for Poussin, with details carefully worked out. The sitter has a melancholy face. The stylish rendering of moustache and beard and the composition itself are strongly reminiscent of Duquesnoy's Nano di Créqui and his bust of Cardinal Maurizio of Savoy.[4] The physiognomy and the surface of the sitter's skin are delicately rendered; delicacy and sensitivity contrast with the long, curvy hair framing the sitter's face.[2][5]