French school; XIX century.

French school; XIX century.
"Boy with dog".
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 118 x 93 cm; 142 x 115 cm (frame).
The painting represents a small boy, with a serene face and a mischievous look, holding a ball with one hand, while with the other he caresses or holds a big dog. The composition establishes a balance between tenderness and protection, between the ephemerality of childish play and animal fidelity, attributes often exalted in nineteenth-century portraiture. The soft lighting and the meticulous details of the dog's clothing and fur reveal the artist's technical skill, which is part of the bourgeois taste for intimate and personalized portraits.
During the 19th century in France, the child portrait acquired a remarkable relevance, not only as a manifestation of family affection but also as a sign of status and dynastic continuity within the emerging upper and middle classes. These images sought to preserve the memory of childhood as an idealized stage, charged with moral values, purity and domesticity. In a context where academic painting coexisted with new trends such as realism and impressionism, the portrait of children allowed a sensitive exploration of the individual from his early years, helping to consolidate the image of childhood as an emotional and socially valuable territory.