Augustin de Saint-Aubin - Jules de Goncourt

An 1864 etching by Jules de Goncourt depicting the French artist Augustin de Saint-Aubin at his drawing board.

This etching by Jules de Goncourt depicts the eighteenth-century French draughtsman and engraver Augustin de Saint-Aubin at work. Executed in 1864, the print reflects the nineteenth-century fascination with the art and culture of the Ancien Régime, a subject the Goncourt brothers studied extensively. Jules de Goncourt, alongside his brother Edmond, was a collector and historian who sought to revive interest in the refined aesthetics of the previous century.

The composition captures Saint-Aubin in profile, hunched over a drawing board with a stylus held in his raised hand. The artist employs a delicate, linear technique that mimics the appearance of a sketch. The background is suggested through vertical hatching, which provides a sense of depth without distracting from the primary figure. The focus remains on the act of creation, with the artist's posture conveying concentration and technical precision. The signature and date are visible in the lower left, while the subject's name is inscribed at the base of the plate.

Jules de Goncourt's approach to printmaking here demonstrates a clear appreciation for the graphic traditions of the past. By choosing to portray a fellow artist from a bygone era, he creates a dialogue between his own time and the history of French art. The work is characterised by its restraint and clarity, avoiding unnecessary ornamentation to maintain a focus on the subject's professional activity. This piece is a representative example of the Goncourts' efforts to document and celebrate the artistic figures who shaped the visual culture of eighteenth-century France. The print serves as a record of both the subject's identity and the etcher's technical skill in capturing a moment of quiet, focused labour.