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Charles Le Brun (
baptised Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...
24 February 1619 – 12 February 1690) was a French
painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...
,
physiognomist Physiognomy (from the Greek , , meaning "nature", and , meaning "judge" or "interpreter") is the practice of assessing a person's character or personality from their outer appearance—especially the face. The term can also refer to the general ...
, art theorist, and a director of several art schools of his time. As
court painter A court painter was an artist who painted for the members of a royal or princely family, sometimes on a fixed salary and on an exclusive basis where the artist was not supposed to undertake other work. Painters were the most common, but the cour ...
to
Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...
, who declared him "the greatest French artist of all time", he was a dominant figure in 17th-century French art and much influenced by
Nicolas Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for ...
.


Biography


Early life and training

Born in Paris, Le Brun attracted the notice of Chancellor Séguier, who placed him at the age of eleven in the studio of Simon Vouet. He was also a pupil of François Perrier. At fifteen he received commissions from
Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...
, in the execution of which he displayed an ability which obtained the generous commendations of
Nicolas Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for ...
, in whose company Le Brun started for
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
in 1642. In Rome, he remained four years in the receipt of a pension due to the liberality of the chancellor. There he worked under Poussin, adapting the latter's theories of art. While in Rome, Le Brun studied ancient
Roman sculpture The study of Roman sculpture is complicated by its relation to Greek sculpture. Many examples of even the most famous Greek sculptures, such as the Apollo Belvedere and Barberini Faun, are known only from Roman Imperial or Hellenistic "copies". At ...
, made copies after
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual ...
, and absorbed the influence of the local painters. On his return to Paris in 1646, Le Brun found numerous patrons, of whom Superintendent Fouquet was the most important, for whom he painted a large portrait of
Anne of Austria Anne of Austria (french: Anne d'Autriche, italic=no, es, Ana María Mauricia, italic=no; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666) was an infanta of Spain who became Queen of France as the wife of King Louis XIII from their marriage in 1615 unt ...
. Employed at Vaux-le-Vicomte, Le Brun ingratiated himself with Mazarin, then secretly pitting Colbert against Fouquet. Le Brun was the driving force behind the establishment of the French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1648, and was elected as one of the original twelve elders in charge of its running. He remained a dominant figure at the academy and held the positions of chancellor in 1655 (from 1663 chancellor for life), rector from 1668 and director from 1683. When Colbert took control of the institution in 1661, Le Brun was there to assist him in his endeavour to reorganise it with the goal that the academicians would work towards bringing about a theoretical foundation for a national French art . Both also founded the
Academy of France at Rome The French Academy in Rome (french: Académie de France à Rome) is an Academy located in the Villa Medici, within the Villa Borghese, on the Pincio (Pincian Hill) in Rome, Italy. History The Academy was founded at the Palazzo Capranica in ...
in 1666 as a base for promising young artists who would live and learn there for a certain period on the expense of the crown. Another project Le Brun worked on was
Hôtel Lambert The Hôtel Lambert () is a ''hôtel particulier,'' a grand mansion townhouse, on the Quai Anjou on the eastern tip of the Île Saint-Louis, in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. In the 19th century, the name ''Hôtel Lambert'' also came to designa ...
. The ceiling in the gallery of
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...
was painted by him. Le Brun started work on the project in 1650, shortly after his return from Italy. The decoration continued intermittently over twelve years or so, as it was interrupted by the renovation of
Vaux le Vicomte The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte (English: Palace of Vaux-le-Vicomte) is a Baroque French château located in Maincy, near Melun, southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne department of Île-de-France. Built between 1658 and 1661 for Nicola ...
. In 1660 they established the Gobelins, which at first was a great school for the manufacture, not of
tapestries Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...
only, but of every class of furniture required in the royal palaces. Commanding the industrial arts through the Gobelins—of which he was director—and the whole artistic world through the Academy—in which he successively held every post—Le Brun imprinted his own character on all that was produced in France during his lifetime. He was the originator of ''
Louis XIV Style The Louis XIV style or ''Louis Quatorze'' ( , ), also called French classicism, was the style of architecture and decorative arts intended to glorify King Louis XIV and his reign. It featured majesty, harmony and regularity. It became the official ...
'' and gave a direction to the national tendencies which endured centuries after his death. The artistic output of artists and students from the Gobelins would also exert a strong influence on art elsewhere in Europe.


Success years

The nature of his emphatic and pompous talent was in harmony with the taste of the king, who, full of admiration for the paintings by Le Brun for his triumphal entry into Paris (1660) and his decorations at the Château Vaux le Vicomte (1661),Constans, Claire. "Le Brun, Charles" Grove Art Online. January 01, 2003. Oxford University Press. commissioned him to execute a series of subjects from the history of Alexander. The first of these, "Alexander and the Family of Darius," so delighted
Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...
that he at once ennobled Le Brun (December, 1662), who was also created '' Premier Peintre du Roi'' (''First Painter of the King'') with a pension of 12,000 livres, the same amount as he had yearly received in the service of the magnificent Fouquet. The King had declared him "the greatest French artist of all time". "The Family of Darius," also known as "The Queens of Persia at the Feet of Alexander," was later cut down slightly in size by Le Brun, and retouched to disguise the alteration, presumably to make the painting similar in size to a painting by Paolo Veronese that Louis XIV had acquired. From this date all that was done in the royal palaces was directed by Le Brun. Designs had to be approved by the king before they could be rendered into paintings or sculptures. In 1663, he became director of the ''Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture'', where he laid the basis of academicism and became the all-powerful, peerless master of 17th-century French art. It was during this period that he dedicated a series of works to the history of Alexander The Great (''The Battles of Alexander The Great''), and he did not miss the opportunity to make a stronger connection between the magnificence of Alexander and that of the great King. While he was working on ''The Battles'', Le Brun's style became much more personal as he moved away from the ancient masters that influenced him. Work on the Gallery of Apollo in the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
was interrupted in 1677 when Lebrun accompanied the king to
Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
(on his return from
Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the No ...
he painted several compositions in the
Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye The Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a former royal palace in the commune of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, in the ''département'' of Yvelines, about 19 km west of Paris, France. Today, it houses the '' musée d'Archéologie nationale'' (N ...
), and finally—for they remained unfinished at his death—by the vast labours of
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...
, where he reserved for himself the Halls of War and Peace (''Salons de la Guerre''and ''de la Paix'', 1686), the Ambassadors' Staircase, and the Great Hall of Mirrors (''
Galerie des Glaces The Hall of Mirrors (french: Grande Galerie, Galerie des Glaces, Galerie de Louis XIV) is a grand Baroque style gallery and one of the most emblematic rooms in the royal Palace of Versailles near Paris, France. The grandiose ensemble of the hal ...
'', 1679–1684). Le Brun's decoration is not only a work of art, it is the definitive monument of a reign. In 1669, Louis XIV elected to completely renovate Versailles, which was then a tiny palace, and transform it into an opulent dwelling where he would meet with his subjects and foreign diplomats. Le Brun was in charge of its decoration down to the most minute details of arrangement and presentation. In addition to classical paintings, depictions of Louis’ reign also adorned the palace walls. The whole structure and its decorations were intended to awe visitors with the splendor, wealth and taste of the king. The ''Escalier des Ambassadeurs'' was the main staircase at the entryway to Versailles from its completion in 1679 until its destruction in 1752. The king was so pleased with its appearance that he reportedly referred to it as "Monsieur Le Brun's staircase" when he showed it to an ambassador from Spain in 1679.


Later years

At the death of Colbert, François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois, who succeeded as superintendent in the department of public works, showed no favour to Le Brun who was Colbert's favorite, and in spite of the king's continued support Le Brun felt a bitter change in his position. This contributed to the illness that on 22 February 1690 ended in his death in Gobelins (his private mansion, in Paris).


Le Brun's work and legacy

Le Brun primarily worked for King Louis XIV, for whom he executed large
altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting ...
s and battle pieces. His most important paintings are at Versailles. Besides his gigantic labours at Versailles and the Louvre, the number of his works for religious corporations and private patrons is enormous. Le Brun was also a fine portraitist and an excellent draughtsman, but he was not fond of portrait or landscape painting, which he felt to be a mere exercise in developing technical prowess. What mattered was scholarly composition, whose ultimate goal was to nourish the spirit. The fundamental basis on which the director of the Academy-based his art was unquestionably to make his paintings speak, through a series of symbols, costumes and gestures that allowed him to select for his composition the narrative elements that gave his works a particular depth. For Le Brun, a painting represented a story one could read. Nearly all his compositions have been reproduced by celebrated engravers. In his posthumously published treatise, ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' (1698), he promoted the expression of the emotions in painting. Le Brun's view on emotions, which were known as "passions" at the time, drew heavy influence from the work of
René Descartes René Descartes ( or ; ; Latinized: Renatus Cartesius; 31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, scientist, and mathematician, widely considered a seminal figure in the emergence of modern philosophy and science. Ma ...
. The facial expressions, which Le Brun outlined as a template for subsequent artists to follow, were believed to reveal the condition of the soul. It had much influence on art theory for the next two centuries. Many of his drawings are in the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
and the Monaco Royal Collection. He was also the teacher of painter
Ludovico Dorigny Ludovico Dorigny (1654 – 17 October 1742) was a French painter and engraver. Trained in his native country, he spent most of his life and career in Verona, Italy. Life and career Born Louis Dorigny into a family of Parisian artists, Dorign ...
. The Baroque ceiling in the Chambre des Muses at the Chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte outside Paris, was "decorated by Charles Le Brun’s workshop". Many of Charles Le Brun's sketches and designs were later rendered into painting or sculpture by artists working under him. A restoration was completed in 2017 by the current owners, the de Vogüé family. The restored ceiling was unveiled to the public in March of that year. On 23 January 2013, artistic advisors for the Hôtel Ritz Paris, Wanda Tymowska and Joseph Friedman, announced the discovery of ''The Sacrifice of
Polyxena In Greek mythology, Polyxena (; Greek: ) was the youngest daughter of King Priam of Troy and his queen, Hecuba. She does not appear in Homer, but in several other classical authors, though the details of her story vary considerably. After the ...
'', an early work of Le Brun. The picture, dated 1647, ornamented the
Coco Chanel Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing a sporty, c ...
suite of the famous Parisian palace, and went unnoticed for over a century. Posthumously, Le Brun's reputation suffered in the years surrounding the French Revolution and its aftermath, due to his close connection with Louis XIV. By the end of the nineteenth century, the academic values he personified were out of fashion, and it was only in 1963, when a major Le Brun exhibition was organized at Versailles, that his work was reevaluated. He is now considered one of the finest and most versatile French artists of his time.


Partial anthology of works

Décorations: * Decoration of the ceiling of the Galerie d'Apollon, at the
Louvre Palace The Louvre Palace (french: link=no, Palais du Louvre, ), often referred to simply as the Louvre, is an iconic French palace located on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris, occupying a vast expanse of land between the Tuileries Gardens and t ...
. * Decoration of the château de Vaux-le-Vicomte : King's room, ''Le Temps enlevant au Ciel la Vérité''. * Cupola of the Pavillon de l'Aurore at the
château de Sceaux The Château de Sceaux is a grand country house in Sceaux, Hauts-de-Seine, approximately from the centre of Paris, France. Located in a park laid out by André Le Nôtre, visitors can tour the house, outbuildings and gardens. The Petit Château o ...
. *
Murals A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spanish ...
of the ceiling of the
Galerie des Glaces The Hall of Mirrors (french: Grande Galerie, Galerie des Glaces, Galerie de Louis XIV) is a grand Baroque style gallery and one of the most emblematic rooms in the royal Palace of Versailles near Paris, France. The grandiose ensemble of the hal ...
, Palace of Versailles. * ''Apotheosis of Romulus'', cycle eight paintings for the ceiling of a room in the Hôtel d'Aumont, Paris. Canvases: * ''The Sleep of Jesus'', musée du Louvre. * ''Chancellor Séguier and his suite'' musée du Louvre. * Paintings of the ''Story of Alexander'', musée du Louvre. * ''Louis XIV presenting his sceptre and his helmet to Jesus-Christ'', musée des beaux-arts de Lyon. * Cycle of four paintings : ''Air, Earth, Fire and Water'', Musée des Beaux-Arts et d'Archéologie de Châlons-en-Champagne. Publications: * ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' (1698), posthumous publication.


Gallery

File:Louis XIV Equestrian Portrait.jpg, ''Louis XIV Equestrian Portrait'', oil on canvas, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tournai. File:Charles Le Brun - Entry of Alexander into Babylon.JPG, ''Entry of Alexander into Babylon'', ca. 1664, oil on canvas, Louvre. File:Louis-xiv-lebrunl.jpg, ''Portrait of Louis XIV'', 1661. File:Charles Le Brun - Les reines de Perse aux pieds d'Alexandre dit aussi la tente de Darius - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Queens of Persia at the feet of Alexander'', also called ''The Tent of Darius''. File:Lebrun-testelin-louvre.jpg, Portrait of the painter Louis Testelin, ca. 1650, oil on canvas, Louvre. File:Charles Le Brun - Daedalus and Icarus - WGA12535.jpg, ''Daedalus and Icarus'', c. 1645 File:The Descent from the Cross LACMA M.2004.239.jpg, ''The Descent from the Cross'', late 1640s File:Le-Brun-Chute-Dijon.jpg, '' The fall of the rebel angels'', after 1680, oil on canvas, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Dijon. File:Lebrun Louis1668.jpg, ''Louis XIV Equestrian Portrait'', 1668, oil on canvas, Musée de la Chartreuse, Douai. File:Charles Le Brun 001.jpg, ''Apotheosis of Louis XIV'', 1677, oil on canvas, Magyar Szépművészeti Múzeum, Budapest. File:Versailles bassin d'apollon.JPG,
Bassin d'Apollon Le Bassin d'Apollon (English: The Apollon Pond) (also called in English The Fountain of Apollo or Apollo Fountain) is a fountain at the Palace of Versailles, France. Charles Le Brun designed the centerpiece depicting the Greek god Apollo rising ...
at the
Palace of Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
, 1668–1671. Le Brun designed the centerpiece depicting
Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
rising from the sea in a four-horse
chariot A chariot is a type of cart driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, dated to c. 2000&n ...
. File:Charles Le Brun La Colère.jpg, ''La Colère'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Weeping" from Le Brun, Wellcome L0012153.jpg, ''Weeping'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:Terrour or Fright (from Heads Representing the Various Passions of the Soul; as they are Expressed in the Human Countenance- Drawn by that Great Master Monsieur Le Brun) MET DP854027.jpg, ''Terrour or Fright'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:Plate from Le Brun, Bowles's Passions of the soul, circa 1785 Wellcome L0012148.jpg, From ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:Hatred or Jealousy (from Heads Representing the Various Passions of the Soul; as they are Expressed in the Human Countenance- Drawn by that Great Master Monsieur Le Brun) MET DP854028.jpg, ''Hatred or Jealousy'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Simple bodily pain" from Le Brun, Wellcome L0012151.jpg, ''Simple Bodily Pain'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:A woman whose face expresses sadness. Etching in the crayon Wellcome V0009337.jpg, ''Sadness'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:Two faces expressing veneration and rapture. Etching, c. 176 Wellcome V0009320.jpg, ''Veneration and Rapture (1760)'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:C. Le Brun, Dissertation sur un traite de C. Wellcome L0025874.jpg, alt=Dissertation sur un traité de C., Dissertation sur un traité de C.


Images from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions:''

File:Charles Le Brun La Colère.jpg, ''La Colère'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:Rapture from Le Brun, Bowles's Passions Wellcome L0012150.jpg, ''Rapture'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Weeping" from Le Brun, Wellcome L0012153.jpg, ''Weeping'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Horror" from Le Brun, Wellcome L0012156.jpg, ''Horror'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Sadness" from le Brun, Wellcome L0010187.jpg, ''Sadness'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Scorn" from Le Brun, Wellcome L0012155.jpg, ''Scorn'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Compasion" from Le Brun, Wellcome L0012154.jpg, ''Compassion'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:Charles le Brun, The Expressions.jpg, ''The Expressions'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Fear" from Le Brun, Characters des passions, circa 1720. Wellcome L0010224.jpg, ''Fear'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions'' File:"Sadness" from Le Brun, Characters des passions, circa 1720. Wellcome L0010225.jpg, ''Sadness'' from ''Méthode pour apprendre à dessiner les passions''


Notes


References

* * * * * *


Attribution

*


Further reading

* Burchard, Wolf (2016). "The Sovereign Artist: Charles Le Brun and the Image of Louis XIV", Paul Holberton Publishing. . * Burchard, Wolf (2016). 'Les décors tissés de Charles Le Brun: Les Gobelins et la Savonnerie' in Catherine Cardinal et Laurence Riviale (eds), Décors de peintres: Invention et savoir-faire, XVIe–XXe siècles, Clermond-Ferrand. pp. 171–86. * Legrand, J. G; Baltard, Louis-Pierre; Le Brun, Charles (1827).
A series of lithographic drawings illustrative of the relation between the human physiognomy and that of the brute creation
'. * Morel d'Arleux, Louis-Marie-Joseph,
Dissertation sur un traité de Charles Le Brun concernant le rapport de la physionomie humaine avec celle des animaux
' (1827)


External links


Friends of Charles Le Burn website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brun, Charles Le 1619 births 1690 deaths Painters from Paris 17th-century French painters French male painters Premiers peintres du Roi French Baroque painters École des Beaux-Arts faculty Le Brun family Members of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture Catholic painters