Abstract: This article is dedicated to portrait images in Western European porcelain of the XVIII century. Research is conducted on the works created in various European countries, such as Germany (Meissen), France (Sevres), Austria (Vienna), and England (Wedgwood Pottery Manufactory). Prominent masters of porcelain –Kendler, Boizot, Grassi – are the authors of the portraits. Sculptural portrait images of August III – painter of the court of the French Queen Marie Antoinette and the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II are notable for exquisite artistic merit. The article reviews porcelain sculpture, as well as oil painted portraits. Interpretation of the images manifests the features of three styles characteristic to art of the XVIII century: Baroque, Rococo and Classicism. Portrait images reflect the themes typical to the Age of Enlightenment. The article describes the peculiarities of the creations of artists who worked in various European porcelain manufactories. Research methodology is based on the detailed stylistic analysis of the works of Baroque, Rococo and Classicism; fundamental examination of the works in historical sequence for determining the evolutionary changes; comparative analysis for revealing national and authorial specificities. The novelty is defined by the fact that this article is first to comprehensively analyze the portrait images in porcelain of such countries as Germany, France, and Austria of the XVIII century, as well as in identification of the features characteristic to different artists.

Abstract: The article examines the works of porcelain sculptures, made at manufactories in Meissen, Doccia, Sevres, Chelsea and Derby. The creators of these compositions were the leading masters of this artform in the 18th century: Permozer, Kendler, Kirchner, Soldani, Willems. These artists are united by their common use of Christian themes and iconography, which are rarely seen in the secular decorative and applied art of this era. At the same time, on the example of the works of various artists and manufactories, certain general patterns characteristic of this genre of porcelain sculptures can be traced. On the basis of a comparative formal stylistic analysis, the author of this article aims to identify the main figurative features of the examined artifacts, as well as the specific features and characteristics inherent to various manufactories and craftsmen. As a result of a formal analysis, the author comes to the conclusion that all these works clearly show Baroque style features, demonstrated through the expression and external exaltation of the figure, the desire of the masters to accurately convey the complex emotional state of the depicted characters, the artists' metaphorical thinking, and the combination of the mystical and the real.