CHAMPAIGNE, Philippe de
(b. 1602, Bruxelles, d. 1674, Paris)

Portrait of Robert Arnauld d'Andilly

1667
Oil on canvas, 78 x 64 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris

The most important works of Champaigne's later period are the portraits, in which he attains to originality. His real invention is the half-length portrait of a simple type. The treatment of the portraits is highly personal; their sharp observation, their severe naturalism, and their restrained colour are all Champaigne's own. The sitters usually wear black, and there is little to relieve the severity of the whole.