Claude Charles painter and herald of Lorraine

Claude Charles (6 January 1661, Nancy – 4 June 1747, Nancy) was a French historical and decorative painter. He also served as a Herald-at-Arms.

Life and work

He was the son of Jean Charles, an attorney for the local

bailiwick A bailiwick () is usually the area of jurisdiction of a bailiff, and once also applied to territories in which a privately appointed bailiff exercised the sheriff's functions under a royal or imperial writ. In English, the original French combi ...

and a

notary A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is distin ...

. His first art lessons were in

Épinal Épinal (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in northeastern France and the prefecture of the Vosges (department), Vosges Departments of France, department. Geography The commune has a land area of . It is situated on the river Moselle, so ...

with Jean-George Gérard (1642-1690); a painter of religious scenes. At the age of only sixteen, he went to Rome. There, he spent nine years working with

Giovanni Maria Morandi Giovanni Maria Morandi (30 April 1622 – 18 February 1717) was an Italian Baroque painter, known for altarpieces and portraits. Biography He was born in Florence. He studied art with Orazio Fidani and Giovanni Bilivert. Very few works dat ...

and

Carlo Maratta Carlo Maratta or Maratti (18 May 162515 December 1713) was an Italian Baroque painter and Drawing, draughtsman, active principallly in Rome where he was the leading painter in the second half of the 17th century. He was a fresco and canvas painte ...

, as well as several other artists.Biographical notes from the ''Histoire Lorraine''
@ the Lorraine Café (scroll down). Later, he spent a short time in Paris, copying the works of

Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was a French painter who was a leading painter of the Classicism, classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and ...

at the gallery owned by

Paul Fréart de Chantelou Paul Fréart de Chantelou (25 March 1609 – 1694) was a French collector and patron of the arts. He encouraged major artists of his era, in particular Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665) and Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680), and is known for his di ...

. He returned to Nancy in 1688. Two years later, he married Anne Racle, from a family of

goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Modern goldsmiths mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, they have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), plat ...

s and engravers. In 1702, he was named the first Director of the

Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture The Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture (; ) was founded in 1648 in Paris, France. It was the premier art institution of France during the latter part of the Ancien Régime until it was abolished in 1793 during the French Revolution. I ...

in Nancy. The following year, he became the Herald and

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 ...

Leopold, Duke of Lorraine Leopold the Good (11 September 1679 – 27 March 1729) was Duke of Lorraine and Bar from 1690 to his death. Through his son Francis Stephen, he is the direct male ancestor of all rulers of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, including all Emperor ...

. His notable students included Jean-Charles François,

Jean Girardet Jean Girardet (1709 – 28 September 1778) was a French portrait and mural painter. Biography Girardet was born at Lunéville. Before becoming a painter he was, successively, a seminarian, a law student, and a cavalry officer. After settli ...

; and . He practiced a mixture of

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

and traditional art and often collaborated on the designs of his larger works. Several theatrical sets, for example, were designed with the

Galli da Bibiena family The Galli–Bibiena family, or Galli da Bibiena (also spelled "Bibbiena"), was a family of Italian artists of the 17th and 18th centuries, including: "Ferdinando Galli Bibiena Online" (overview), John Malyon, ''Artcyclopedia'', 2005, Artcycl ...

; acquaintances from his time in Rome. Twenty-seven of his works are classified as historical monuments.Works by Claude Charles
@ the Ministère de la Culture

Selected works

Claude Charles (1661-1747) - Saint Sigisbert servant les pauvres à table.JPG, Saint Sigebert
Serving the Poor,

Nancy Cathedral Nancy Cathedral or Cathedral of Our Lady of the Annunciation and St. Sigisbert () is a Roman Catholic church building, church located in the town of Nancy, France, Nancy, Lorraine (region), Lorraine, France. It was erected in the 18th century. The ...

File:La règle 0121.JPG,

Saint Benedict Benedict of Nursia (; ; 2 March 480 – 21 March 547), often known as Saint Benedict, was a Great Church, Christian monk. He is famed in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Lutheran Churches, the Anglican Communion, and Old ...

Conversing with His Sister,

Saint Scholastica Scholastica (; – 10 February 543) was an Italian Christian hermit and the sister of Benedict of Nursia. She is traditionally regarded as the foundress of the Benedictine nuns. Scholastica is honored as a saint of the Catholic Church, Easte ...

Abbaye Saint-Pierre d'Hautvillers Hautvillers Abbey, or more formally the Abbey of St Peter, Hautvillers (), is a former Benedictine monastery in the Hautvillers commune of the Marne department in north-eastern France. The abbey remained active between 665 and the French Revolu ...

Le paralytique 0130.jpg, Saint Peter Healing the Paralytic,
Abbaye Saint-Pierre d'Hautvillers, Choeur 01865 Pierre.jpg, Saint Peter,

Toul Cathedral Toul Cathedral or Cathedral of Saint Stephen of Toul (''Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Toul'') is a Roman Catholic church in Toul, Lorraine, France. It is a classic example of late Gothic architecture in the Flamboyant style. The cathedral has one ...

References

External links

* Michael Bryan, « CHARLES, Claude » in ''Bryan's Dictionary of Painters and Engravers'', Robert Edmund Graves and Sir Walter Armstrong, 1886–1889, p.265
Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Charles, Claude 1661 births 1747 deaths Artists from Nancy, France Painters from Grand Est 17th-century French painters French male painters 18th-century French painters 18th-century French male artists