Eero Järnefelt was a masterful portrait painter. Most of his portraits depict the leading figures of society, such as politicians and academics. He came to be regarded as the "official" portrait artist of Finland, with so many commissions that he hardly had time to paint anything else. Järnefelt also travelled a lot, and his trips to Italy in 1895 and 1897 were particularly important for his artistic development. This exquisite portrait of his son was painted in Florence in 1897.