Antoine Charles Horace Vernet, better known as Carle Vernet (; 14 August 175827 November 1836), was a French painter, the youngest child of Claude-Joseph Vernet and the father of Horace Vernet.

Biography

Vernet was born in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

. At the age of five, he showed an extraordinary passion for drawing horses, but went through the regular academic course as a pupil of his father and of Nicolas-Bernard Lépicié. Strangely, after winning the '' Prix de Rome'' (1782), he seemed to lose interest in the occupation, and his father had to recall him from Rome to prevent his entering a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

. In his "Triumph of Aemilius Paulus", Vernet broke with tradition and drew the horse with the forms he had learnt from nature in stables and riding schools. His hunting pieces, races, landscapes, and work as a

lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...

er were also very popular. Carle's sister was executed by the

guillotine A guillotine ( ) is an apparatus designed for effectively carrying out executions by Decapitation, beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secur ...

during the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

. After this, he gave up art. When he again began to produce under the

French Directory The Directory (also called Directorate; ) was the system of government established by the Constitution of the Year III, French Constitution of 1795. It takes its name from the committee of 5 men vested with executive power. The Directory gov ...

(1795–1799), his style had changed radically. He started drawing in minute detail battles and campaigns to glorify Napoleon. His drawings of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

's Italian campaign won acclaim as did the '' Battle of Marengo'', and for his ''Morning of Austerlitz'' Napoleon awarded him the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

, and Louis XVIII of France awarded him the Order of Saint Michael. Afterwards he excelled in hunting scenes and depictions of horses. He produced a painting ''Capture of Pamplona'' celebrating the 1823 Siege of Pamplona which he exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1824. In addition to being a painter and lithographer, Carle Vernet was an avid horseman. Just days before his death at the age of seventy-eight, he was seen racing as if he were a sprightly young man. He died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Literary references

In Maria Wirtemberska's novel ''Malvina, or the Heart's Intuition'' (1816; English translation 2001, by Ursula Phillips), it is said that a view that is being described merits the talent of Vernet, who as the writer explains in her own footnote was a sea painter.

Selected works

File:Carle Vernet - Arrival of Emigres with the Duchess of Berry on the French Coast - WGA24718.jpg, Arrival of Emigres on the French Coast with the Duchess of Berry Carle Vernet - A Mameluk Leading His Horse - WGA24720.jpg, A Mameluke Leading His Horse File:Napoleon in Battle of Moskowa by Vernet.jpg, Napoleon at the Battle of Borodino File:charles-vernet-top-hat.jpg, Un Incroyable, two French dandies, one bearing what may be the first recorded

top hat A top hat (also called a high hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditionally made of black silk or ...

File:Prise de Pampelune, 17 septembre 1823 (by H. Vernet).jpg, '' Capture of Pamplona'', 1824

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vernet, Carle 1758 births 1835 deaths Painters from Bordeaux 18th-century French painters French male painters 19th-century French painters Prix de Rome for painting Recipients of the Legion of Honour Members of the Académie des beaux-arts 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists Equine artists French sports painters

Biography

Literary references

Selected works

See also

References