42 - Jean-Étienne Liotard (1702–1789)

Jean-Étienne Liotard (1702–1789) Self-Portrait, known as “Hand on the Chin” (small version). Circa 1779. Black-line engraving, burin and roulette. 175 x 210 [192 x 240 mm]. Roethlisberger-Loche 523. A very fine print on laid paper. A tiny hole along the outline of the right arm. Slight foxing. Traces of glue in two corners on the reverse. Narrow margins. Extremely rare. AABM stamp (Lugt 3075). In this self-portrait from the end of his life, Liotard offers a striking rendering of his wrinkles and his mischievous expression. His body of engravings comprises a total of 14 original prints. Among them, the engravings executed entirely or partly in the mezzotint technique (often combined with the roulette and burin) constitute a very limited and late group of about 5 to 6 plates, mainly produced toward the end of his life (around 1778–1781) following his trip to London. This group includes our plate, which also exists in a larger version (Grand Self-Portrait), the portrait of his wife, that of Emperor Joseph II, and other experimental portraits. All of these mezzotint plates are now considered absolute rarities in the history of printmaking.