Portrait of a Gentleman
Artist
José Francisco Xavier de Salazar y Mendoza
(Mexican (active in New Orleans, LA), 1750 - 1802)
CultureAmerican
Dateca. 1792-1801
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 33 1/2 x 26 in. (85.1 x 66 cm)
Overall, Frame: 40 x 32 7/8 in. (101.6 x 83.5 cm)
Overall, Frame: 40 x 32 7/8 in. (101.6 x 83.5 cm)
InscribedUnsigned.
Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number71.756
On View
Chrysler Museum of Art, Gallery 209
Label TextJosé Francisco Xavier de Salazar y Mendoza Mexican, 1750–1802 Portrait of a Gentleman, ca. 1792–1802 Oil on canvas This gentleman’s reserved and formal expression is characteristic of Spanish portraiture, but it remains difficult to guess the sitter’s precise cultural background. When New Orleans joined the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the city was a dynamic mix of French, Creole, African, Spanish, and British influences. José Francisco Xavier de Salazar y Mendoza left Mérida in the Yucatán region of Mexico in the 1780s and settled in New Orleans. He became one of the first professional artists in Louisiana, then under Spanish rule. Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 71.756ProvenanceGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr., to the Chrysler Museum of Art, 1971.Exhibition History"Three Hundred Years of American Art in the Chrysler Museum," Chrysler Museum at Norfolk, Va., March 1 - July 4, 1976.
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