The Functions of the Frame in the Composition of Russian Engraved Portraits in the Second Half of the Eighteenth Century

In the eighteenth century Russia portrait prints were often created after painted originals. This meant that the image was translated from oil painting into etching, stippling, engraving, aquatint, mezzotint and other media. But this was not just a metamorphosis of technique. Engravers often took the liberty of changing the design and provided the portrait with a sort of graphic frame which included architectural and ornamental motifs, inscriptions and signatures, emblems and symbols. Though extremely essential and distinctive, these engraved cadres have always been at the periphery of researchers' attention. What were such frames intended for? What were their characteristic features? What was the difference between engraved cadres and picture frames? And how much did the content of the image change after it was provided with such an informative “accompaniment”? Based on the material of the second half of the eighteenth century this article investigates the composition of engraved portraits in relation to the original portrait paintings. Engraved cadres were not just pieces of decoration or implements for focusing attention on the image. They reflected their context. If every painted portrait was considered as a “mirror” in relation to the sitter, then the portrait print as the reflection of the painting accumulated the reflections of different kinds of “mirrors” visualizing the actual content of the image.