Lot 351: JULES LÉONARD SCHMITZ

JULES LÉONARD SCHMITZ ACTIVE IN PARIS, 1824 - 1850 PORTRAIT OF A KING CHARLES SPANIEL signed and dated lower right: Schmitz. 1839. oil on canvas 18 1/8 by 21 3/8 in.; 46 by 54.3 cm.

By the time Schmitz painted this charming canine portrait, King Charles Spaniels were familiar in art as the pampered playthings of the upper classes and royalty, not only depicted in images along side their masters but also represented in their own individualized "portraits." In placing this dog outside in a landscape -- as opposed to indoors surrounded by plush cushions and gilt furniture -- Schmitz has drawn on the example of the English painter, George Stubbs, whose King Charles Spaniel of 1776 (Private Collection, United Kingdom) shows the dog in an unorthodox, menacing, dark forest. Although very little is known about Schmitz, he is recorded by Benezit as a painter of hunting scenes and horses who exhibited regularly at the Paris Salon between 1824 and 1850.