1818 -1895 · Vilvoorde, Brussels, Rome and Mediterranean

Intense looks, luminous fabrics and a career as a teacher make Jean-François Portaels a central figure in Belgian orientalism and artistic education.

Jean-François Portaels was born in Vilvoorde in 1818. He studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels with François-Joseph Navez, heir to the neoclassicism of Jacques-Louis David, then continued his training in Paris in the workshop by Paul Delaroche. Winner of the Belgian Prix de Rome in 1842, he stayed in Italy before traveling to Greece, the Levant and North Africa. These trips nourished a vast repertoire of faces, costumes, architecture and lighting effects that he continued to exploit for several decades. Portaels painted religious and historical subjects, official portraits, genre scenes and numerous so-called oriental figures. The woman oriental belongs to the latter set. The model is close to the viewer; look, headdress, jewelry and colorful fabric focus attention more than a detailed geographical setting. The work must be placed in the context of 19th century European orientalism. It does not constitute a neutral document on a specific society: travel observations, souvenirs, workshop accessories and expectations of the Western public combine in a constructed image. Portaels, however, stands out for the attention paid to the individuality of the face. The figure does not disappear under the costume; she retains a psychological presence which explains the success of his female portraits. His role goes far beyond his personal production. Director of the Academy of Ghent in 1847, facilitator of a free workshop in Brussels, then director of the Royal Academy of Brussels from 1878, he trained several generations of artists. His teaching links the neoclassicism learned from Navez, romanticism, realism and modern research of the end of the century. Among the students associated with his workshop are Émile Wauters, Théo van Rysselberghe, Léon Frédéric, Jean Delville and Xavier Mellery. Portaels also responded to religious and royal commissions and advised the Belgian sovereign family. Died in Schaerbeek in 1895, he left a double legacy: a vast one set of paintings where travel and portrait meet, and a determining educational influence on Belgian modernity. The "Jean Portaels" selection notably compares Oriental Women. His reading favors composition.

At Portaels, the fabric first catches the eye, but the face quickly takes over the leading role and transforms the orientalist type into an individual presence.