Bust of Marie-Sébastien-Charles-François Fontaine de Biré

Through exacting realism, Jean-Antoine Houdon convincingly captured the skin's texture, and the underlying bone and musculature of this eminent figure. The sitter's attire and hair--styled with a long ponytail at the back--indicate his status as a high-ranking French government official. But Monsieur de Biré's personality also shows through in the bust's subtle features. The wrinkles around his eyes and the soft jowls that brush his scarf reveal advanced age. Yet his sparkling eyes and the upturned corners of his lips, which hint at a smile, convey a warm disposition.

To accurately render Biré's likeness, Houdon measured his head and face with calipers, and probably made a plaster "life mask" for reference. He probably modeled the bust first in clay, and then made a plaster cast. From those initial studies, Houdon would have produced this final marble version, which he gave to the sitter. Biré may have commissioned the bust to celebrate his newly appointed position as a treasury official under Louis XVI.