Voltaire

Jean-Antoine Houdon

National Gallery of Art

The head, shoulders, and upper chest of a man wearing a curly wig are carved from white marble in this freestanding portrait sculpture. In this photograph, the man’s body and face are squared to us but his eyes cut to our right. His high forehead is lined, and there are crow’s feet around his eyes and wrinkles down the sides of his mouth. His thin lips are pulled up in a slight smile. The hair of his wig is brushed back, and it falls in tiers of dense curls to his shoulders. A white cloth is tied around his sinewy neck, and ruffles peek from the opening of his buttoned vest under his coat. The bust is curved along the bottom edge and sits on a round, stone pedestal. The sculpture is photographed against a gray background.