Lot 918: Ambrose Duval (French, b. 1760, active New Orleans

Ambrose Duval (French, b. 1760, active New Orleans 1803-1835), "Portrait of a Young Man in Formal Dress", c. 1815, watercolor miniature on ivory, signed lower right, with a separate watercolor miniature on ivory of a floral still life between portrait and frame, 3 in. x 2 1/4 in., in a period gilt brass frame. Note: The French born Duval was one of the most talented and successful miniaturists working and teaching in New Orleans in the early 19th century; his portrait of William Claiborne, the first Governor of Louisiana is considered a masterpiece of miniature portraiture. Duval also considered himself a naturalist and had an extensive collection of preserved birds, which he loaned to John James Audubon. Watercolors of several of these specimens were included in Audubon's famous Birds of America. Reference: Mahé. Encyclopedia of New Orleans Artists. Historic New Orleans Collection. pp. 221, 222.