Artwork
Head of a Child
Head of a Child is an oil painting. It dates from 1900 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The work presents a portrait of a young child, depicted from the shoulders up with the head turned slightly away from the viewer.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The work depicts a single child, serving as the sole subject of the composition.
The work depicts a single child, serving as the sole subject of the composition. Created in 1900 in the style of Jacques-Louis David, the painting presents a straightforward portrait without additional narrative elements or complex iconography described in the available records. As a study of a juvenile figure, the piece focuses on the representation of childhood itself rather than conveying a specific symbolic allegory or mythological meaning.
Technique & Style
Head of a Child is executed in oil paint on canvas, a medium consistent with the broader painterly tradition associated with Jacques Louis David, in whose style the work is classified. The canvas measures 40 cm in height by 32.1 cm in width, yielding a modest, upright format suited to an intimate character study of a child's head. Classified simply as a painting dated to 1900, the work relies on the handling qualities of oil on canvas to articulate the features of its young subject. No further details regarding condition, surface handling, or stylistic elaboration are documented in the available sources.
History & Provenance
The work titled Head of a Child was created in 1900 as an oil painting on canvas, measuring 40 cm by 32.1 cm. It belongs to the style of Jacques Louis David and was produced by an artist identified by the Wikidata identifier 5d886ce96c2dac5c3a8f71ce75c3be48. The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds the piece in its collection and currently displays it in New York.
Head of a Child is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection, listed under inventory number 28.100.2. The work was first exhibited in the museum's European Paintings galleries, and it has subsequently appeared in several Met exhibitions focusing on early 20th-century portraiture and on the artistic lineage of Jacques Louis David.
Overview
The work presents a portrait of a young child, depicted from the shoulders up with the head turned slightly away from the viewer. Rendered in oil, the composition emphasizes the texture of the paint and the loose handling of brushstrokes, particularly evident in the hair and surrounding background.
Context
The painting aligns with a broader tradition of portraiture that privileges painterly technique over precise likeness, echoing 19th‑century explorations of texture and the expressive potential of oil medium.
Artist & collection
![The Artist's Son Georges [verso], by Camille Pissarro](https://artifactworldgallery.com/img/camille-pissarro--the-artist-s-son-georges-verso--053697550e9f2889-w320.webp)
