A Black Model

The artist who painted this work is unknown, as is the identity of the young man represented here. The sitter’s luxurious jacket and waistcoat are Albanian, but his turban and loose trousers appear to be Turkish or North-African. The picture follows conventions of portraiture, with its focus on the man’s facial features and high-status dress. The combination of different styles, however, suggests that the figure might be intended to represent a fictional character, rather than a real person. At the time, in portraits like this, black people were often depicted dressed in costume and not named.