The Violinist Niccolò Paganini

Ingres was a life-long proponent of the primacy of line over colour. His service to art lay in his abilities as a portraitist and as one of the most important draughtsmen of the century. His portrait drawings are remarkable for their psychological empathy and the enormous subtlety with which light and surface area are treated.

Ingres, himself a talented violinist, drew a portrait of Niccolò Paganini - at that stage at the very beginning of his career - probably as a reminder of concerts the two friends had performed together.

Listen to an example of Paganini's music.