Thought to be Diderot (left), by Loos - Now certainly not Diderot (right), by Fragonard -Both in the Louvre.
The
philosophe and author of the original
Encyclopédie, I took a seminar on Diderot as an undergrad French major at Yale, and my wife studied him as an art history grad student there. Among academics he is considered to be sort of an intellectual grandfather of street photography.
Googling him today, I learned that the ubiquitous classic portrait of him by Fragonard was recently proven to be someone else, whose name is illegible, but cannot be Diderot. The eyes have always been known to be the wrong color, but, as in so many things, the supply of portraits of Diderot rose to meet the demand for them. Only irrefutable documentary proof could shake people's confidence.
The great Pierre Rosenberg at the Louvre shrugged and said such matters are an everyday occurrence.
Too bad, it's a much more expressive portrait than the other.
How many other false beliefs are resting in our crania, dear friends?
--
Frank
shot in downtown Manhattan.
http://sidewalkshadows.com/blog/ (street photos)
