Spanish school (XIX) - Ritratto antropomorfo

Spanish School of the Second Half of the 19th Century

"Anthropomorphic Portrait"

Oil on canvas / period 1850/900

Presentation of the painting

This curious painting, datable to the end of the 19th century, belongs to the strand of anthropomorphic portraits, a genre that enjoyed a fair fortune between the 19th and early 20th centuries, especially in bourgeois and decorative circles. The work depicts a dog – probably a German Shepherd – with an animal head and human body, portrayed in a half-length format according to the canons of the official portrait.

The animal wears an 19th-century military uniform, enriched with decorations and honors, including a cross on the chest, symbol of courage and fidelity. The pose is solemn and composed: humanized hands rest calmly on a surface, recalling iconographic models typical of aristocratic and military portraiture of the 19th century. The neutral, warm background helps focus attention on the figure, accentuating its almost “human” dignity.

Stylistically, the work presents a traditional painting technique, with a palette dominated by browns, dark greens and ochres, today further softened by the patina of time and by the craquelure of the painting surface. The rendering of the dog’s snout is surprisingly precise and naturalistic, in contrast with the deliberately artificial construction of the human body, creating a subtle balance between realism and irony.

Symbolically, the painting can be read as a gentle satire or as an allegory of the virtues attributed to the dog – loyalty, obedience, discipline – translated into the language of power and military authority. A purely decorative or commemorative function cannot be ruled out either, perhaps linked to a private setting, such as a study or bourgeois drawing room, where works of this kind aroused curiosity and refined amusement.

Overall, the painting represents an interesting document of late 19th-century taste, capable of fusing academic tradition, visual humor and moral symbolism, offering contemporary viewers a reading both fascinating and ambiguously ironic.

This series of anthropomorphic portraits are the work of a Spanish painter, active between 1830 and 1900; the work is unsigned. The painting appears on a primed canvas with signs of the passage of time.

Canvas: 70 x 50 cm

Coming from a private collection

Condition: Good, with normal signs of aging - see photos

* the frame shown in the photo was used for display purposes only / the frame is not part of the sale

Ideal for collecting and investment

With a legally compliant certificate of authenticity - Expertise

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