Robert Gardelle was born into a bourgeois family in Geneva. He was the second of four sons, nicknamed “the younger” (le jeune) to distinguish him from his brother Daniel Gardelle (1679–1753), known as “the elder” (l’aîné). Robert Gardelle studied painting in Kassel under Baron Mardfeld before spending time in Berlin. He subsequently moved to Paris, where he became a pupil of Largillierre, whose portraits he copied. In 1713, he returned to Geneva and established himself as a prominent portraitist, depicting some of the most influential figures of his time, such as Pierre Fatio and Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

The present portrait, which exhibits the smooth and delicate appearance characteristic of Robert Gardelle’s portraits on copper from around the 1720s–1730s, may represent - according to a non-autograph inscription on the reverse - one Robert Dunant-Massé. He was the brother of Attorney General Jacques Dunant-Massé and the uncle of a member of the Céard family. If this identification is correct, the painting has remained in the same family since its creation: Hippolyte Gosse’s grandmother, Elisabeth Céard, was the daughter of Nicolas Céard and Françoise Massé.

We thank prof. Frédéric Elsig for suggesting the dating of the present Portrait.