Chats on Old Miniatures

In Short

Written by art historian J. J. Foster, this comprehensive monograph provides a history and collector's guide to the art of miniature portraiture. The book traces the medium's evolution from its medieval roots in illuminated missals through its golden ages in Tudor and Stuart England, eighteenth-century France, and the Georgian era, up to its decline in the nineteenth century. Foster offers technical insights into painting on vellum, ivory, and enamel, while guiding readers through major public and private collections. It remains a valuable reference due to its authoritative historical scope, practical advice for collectors, and passionate defense of portrait miniaturists.

The Story

The book opens with practical counsel for the aspiring collector, emphasizing the delicate physical care miniatures require and offering essential advice on navigating common pitfalls, such as distinguishing between artists with identical surnames or untangling modern forgeries. Foster then traces the origins of the art form back to medieval illuminated manuscripts and religious missals, explaining how the term "miniature" derived from the ornamentation of church texts before expanding to denote small-scale portraiture. He explores the physical mediums of the art, contrasting the fragile beauty of watercolours and gouache on vellum or ivory with the durability of enamel painting, a technique refined by French goldsmiths like Jean Toutin and perfected by Jean Petitot.

Moving chronologically, the narrative examines the rise of portrait painting in Britain and Continental Europe. Although early British portraiture relied heavily on foreign talent, foundational figures like Hans Holbein established a high standard for small-scale portraiture during the Tudor period. Nicholas Hilliard refined the art into a distinctly British tradition, followed by Isaac and Peter Oliver, as well as John Hoskins. The seventeenth century reached its artistic peak in the works of Samuel Cooper—hailed as the supreme master of the medium—and Jean Petitot, whose enamel portraits at the courts of Charles I and Louis XIV achieved unparalleled richness and permanence.

As the narrative enters the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the focus shifts to the Georgian masters and their French contemporaries. English miniaturists like Richard Cosway and George Engleheart produced thousands of popular works, though often at the expense of longevity due to fading ivory pigments. Across the Channel, the French school flourished through the tumultuous decades of the Revolution and the First Empire. Artists like François Dumont, Jean-Baptiste Jacques Augustin, and Jean-Baptiste Isabey produced works of extraordinary vigor and technical precision, even during the Reign of Terror.

The book concludes with a guided survey of royal, private, and public collections, highlighting treasures at Windsor Castle, the Wallace Collection at Hertford House, and the Victoria and Albert Museum, alongside insights from the landmark 1906 Exhibition at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. Foster closes with an earnest appeal to the public to value miniature painting as a noble artistic heritage worth preserving rather than a mere novelty.

How It Unfolds

Care and discrimination The reader is introduced to the fundamentals of collecting, from protecting delicate ivory miniatures against light to distinguishing between artists with shared names, such as the numerous painters named Bone, Collins, or Dixon.

Roots in medieval illumination The historical journey begins with the fourth-century Byzantine traditions and Charlemagne's Gospel manuscripts, showing how devotional text decoration laid the groundwork for small-scale portraiture.

The alchemy of enamel The narrative examines the technical breakthrough of fusing enamel colours on metallic grounds, highlighting how Jean Toutin's palette enabled Jean Petitot to create brilliant, permanent portraits.

Tudor and Stuart masters The focus turns to early portraiture, analyzing Holbein's circular portraits, Hilliard's Elizabethan elegance, the exquisite craftsmanship of the Olivers, and the unmatched psychological depth achieved by Samuel Cooper.

The Georgian flourish and its pitfalls The text details the rapid output of eighteenth-century painters like Cosway and Engleheart, while warning collectors against widespread modern copies and the fading nature of ivory pigments.

Resilience of the French school The survey explores French miniaturists like Dumont and Sicardi, demonstrating how their refined artistry thrived unbroken through the upheaval of the French Revolution and the First Empire.

A tour of national treasures The closing chapters lead the reader through famous collections at Hertford House and Windsor Castle, ending with a plea to treat miniature painting as a vital artistic legacy.

The People

Hans Holbein The German master brought fine small-scale portraiture to the Tudor court. Unsigned yet distinctive, his circular portraits of Henry VIII's court set a benchmark for early portraiture in England.

Nicholas Hilliard A pupil of Holbein's tradition, Hilliard captured the court of Queen Elizabeth with meticulous touch and goldsmith-like delicacy, establishing a distinctly native British school of miniature painting.

Samuel Cooper Regarded as the greatest miniaturist of all, Cooper captured the faces of the Commonwealth and Restoration, including Oliver Cromwell and Charles II, with a breadth and realism that rivaled Van Dyck.

Jean Petitot A Genevan enameller who mastered the delicate chemical art of firing vitreous pigments. Attracted to the court of Charles I and later pensioned by Louis XIV, his brilliant enamel portraits remain completely unfaded centuries later.

Richard Cosway A prolific Georgian artist who achieved fame and fortune through his rapid execution and delicate style, though his works suffer from fading pigments and rampant modern forgery.

François Dumont A leading French miniaturist who painted Marie Antoinette and survived the Revolution, leaving behind portraits characterized by solid craftsmanship and vigorous characterization.

In Its Own Voice

"Miniature painting upon ivory, charming as it is in its delicate effects, is, as we all know, subject to the great defect of being fleeting in its nature, when exposed to light."

The author notes the inherent physical fragility of ivory portraits compared to enamel, highlighting the technical challenges collectors and conservators face.

"Uncertainty and confusion often arise in the mind of purchasers owing to miniature painters of widely different abilities bearing similar names, and sometimes owning the same initials."

This practical warning warns prospective art buyers about the complexities of attribution in historical cataloging.

"Miniatures must be taken seriously, not regarded as mere bric-à-brac or trifles."

The author summarizes his overarching philosophy, demanding that readers appreciate small-scale portraiture as a significant fine art.

What It's Really About

Beneath its catalog of names and historical dates, the book presents a passionate argument for the preservation and serious aesthetic appreciation of miniature painting. Foster contends that small-scale portraits offer an intimate, unrivaled window into history, capturing the likenesses and fashions of historical figures with personal immediacy. The text addresses the tension between artistic permanence and rapid commercial production, contrasting the enduring brilliance of enamel work with the fleeting, light-sensitive nature of ivory miniatures. Ultimately, the book calls upon the public and art institutions to cultivate refined taste, reject cheap commercial imitations, and treat portraiture-in-little as a major historical legacy rather than a trivial decorative craft.

Why Read It Today

This book will appeal to art historians, antique collectors, and lovers of social history who appreciate detailed, authoritative scholarship. Reading it feels like taking a private tour through a museum gallery in the company of a knowledgeable, polite Victorian guide who knows the provenance and history of every case. Foster writes with quiet clarity, drawing on decades of firsthand expertise and private collection access.

Modern readers should be prepared for its instructional density and catalogic structure. The text frequently lists names, dates, and historical collection inventories, assuming a general familiarity with British and European history. However, these technical details are balanced by vivid historical anecdotes and genuine enthusiasm for the medium. What stays with the reader is a heightened appreciation for the microscopic skill required by artists who captured human personality on a surface no larger than a pocket watch.