Alexander Grant

About this work

You see a young man in a red coat, standing against a dark background. His face is lit softly, one hand resting on his hip. This portrait was painted in 1770, when artists often worked on commission. The sitter, Alexander Grant, was a Scottish soldier—his uniform hints at his role. The dark background makes the red coat pop, a trick many portrait painters used to focus attention. Look up *chiaroscuro* to see how light and shadow shape a face like this.