Portrait of Mikhail F. Naumov (1757-1823)

Executed in oil paint on canvas, the portrait demonstrates the polished finish typical of formal early nineteenth-century portraiture. The brushwork is smooth and blended in the rendering of the face, which features fair, subtly shaded flesh, a broad forehead, and full lips. In contrast, the background foliage and distant landscape employ more textured, visible strokes. Light falls evenly across the subject, modeling his features and the metallic sheen of his decorations without harsh shadows. The palette is dominated by deep blues, rich golds, and varied greens, with warm flesh tones and red accents at the collar. Fine craquelure is visible in the darker areas of the coat.

The painting was created in 1824, with sources indicating a completion date no later than 1828, aligning with the broader timeline for the creation of the Winter Palace's Military Gallery. It was produced by the workshop of George Dawe, the English portrait painter active in Saint Petersburg from 1818 to 1828. The work has remained in the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg as part of the Military Gallery of the Winter Palace, where it continues to be housed.

This portrait is a product of George Dawe's monumental commission in Saint Petersburg, where he and his workshop produced hundreds of portraits of Russian generals who distinguished themselves during the Napoleonic Wars. The depiction of Naumov follows the established conventions of the Military Gallery, balancing the meticulous rendering of uniform details and honors with a subdued, atmospheric background. The loose, natural backdrop of muted sky, distant hills, water, and dense green foliage serves to offset the dark uniform and elaborate gold embellishments, grounding the formal military likeness in a broader landscape tradition.