Conversation Pieces. A Survey of the Informal Group Portrait in Europe and America. Marion Praz

The conversation piece, an intimate group portrait usually of small dimensions, is a genre which arose in the Low Countries, flourished in 18th-century England, and declined with the invention of photography. Professor Praz does not confine himself to tracing its history. He shows its close connection with the rise of the middle class, follows the different patterns and themes adopted by the artists, takes into account the various national developments; he explains why, for instance, the Italians mostly confined themselves to groups portrayed only down to the waist, while the Dutch and English invented the typical dramatic form of the conver.