Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson (; or ''de Roucy''), also known as Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson or simply Girodet (29 January 17679 December 1824),Long, George. (1851) ''The Supplement to the Penny Cyclopædia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge'', C. Knight. was a French

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

and pupil of

Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David (; 30 August 1748 – 29 December 1825) was a French painter in the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. In the 1780s, his cerebral brand of history painting marked a change in ...

, who participated in the early

Romantic movement Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

by including elements of eroticism in his paintings. Girodet is remembered for his precise and clear style and for his paintings of members of the Napoleonic family.

Early career

Girodet was born at Montargis. Both of his parents died when he was a young adult. The care of his inheritance and education fell to his guardian, a prominent physician named Benoît-François Trioson, "''médecin-de-mesdames''", who later adopted him. The two men remained close throughout their lives and Girodet took the surname Trioson in 1812. In school he first studied architecture and pursued a military career.Polet, Jean-Claude. (1992) ''Patrimoine littéraire européen'', De Boeck Université. 730 pages. . He changed to the study of painting under a teacher named Luquin and then entered the school of

. At the age of 22 he successfully competed for the with a painting of the ''Story of Joseph and his Brethren''. From 1789 to 1793 he lived in Italy and while in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

he painted his ''Hippocrate refusant les presents d'Artaxerxes'' and ''Endymion-dormant'' (now in the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

), a work which gained him great acclaim at the Salon of 1793 and secured his reputation as a leading painter in the French school. Once he returned to France, Girodet painted many portraits, including some of members of the Bonaparte family. In 1806, in competition with the ''Sabines'' of David, he exhibited his ' (Louvre), which was awarded the decennial prize. In 1808 he produced the ''Reddition de Vienne'' and ''Atala au tombeau'', a work which won immense popularity, by its fortunate choice of subject –

François-René de Chateaubriand François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand (4 September 1768 – 4 July 1848) was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian who influenced French literature of the nineteenth century. Descended from an old aristocratic family from Bri ...

's novel '' Atala'', first published in 1801 – and its remarkable departure from the theatricality of Girodet's usual manner. He would return to his theatrical style in ''La Révolte du Caire'' (1810).

Later life

Girodet was a member of the Academy of Painting and of the

Institut de France The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately ...

, a knight of the

Order of Saint Michael The Order of Saint Michael () is a French dynastic order of chivalry, founded by King Louis XI of France on 1 August 1469, in response to the Order of the Golden Fleece founded by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor fo ...

, and officer of 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 ...

. Among his pupils were Hyacinthe Aubry-Lecomte,

Augustin Van den Berghe the Younger Charles-Auguste van den Berghe (1798–1853), was a French painter. He was born in Beauvais as the son of Augustin van den Berghe and became the pupil of Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson.François Edouard Bertin, Angélique Bouillet, Alexandre-Marie Colin, Marie Philippe Coupin de la Couperie,

Henri Decaisne Henri Decaisne (; 27 January 1799 – 17 October 1852) was a Belgian historical and portrait painter. Biography Decaisne was born at Brussels in 1799. As early as 1814 he began to study painting under Pierre Joseph Celestin François, François, ...

, Paul-Emile Destouches, Achille Devéria,

Eugène Devéria Eugène François Marie Joseph Devéria (22 April 1805, in Paris – 3 February 1865, in Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Pau) was a French Romanticism, Romantic history painter, portraitist and muralist. Biography He was one of five children born ...

, Savinien Edme Dubourjal, Joseph Ferdinand Lancrenon, Antonin Marie Moine, Jean Jacques François Monanteuil, Henry Bonaventure Monnier, Rosalie Renaudin, Johann Heinrich Richter, François Edme Ricois, Joseph Nicolas Robert-Fleury, and Philippe Jacques Van Brée. In his forties his powers began to fail, and his habit of working at night and other excesses weakened his constitution. In the Salon of 1812 he exhibited only a ''Tête de Vierge''; in 1819 '' Pygmalion et Galatée'' showed a further decline of strength. In 1824, the year in which he produced his portraits of Cathelineau and Bonchamps, Girodet died on December 9 in Paris. At a sale of his effects after his death, some of his drawings realized enormous prices.

Posthumously published work

Girodet produced a vast quantity of illustrations, amongst which may be cited those for the Didot editions of the works of

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

(1798) and Racine (1801–1805). Fifty-four of his designs for the works of the ancient Greek poet

Anacreon Anacreon ( BC) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet, notable for his drinking songs and erotic poems. Later Greeks included him in the canonical list of Nine Lyric Poets. Anacreon wrote all of his poetry in the ancient Ionic dialect. Like all early ...

were engraved by M. Châtillon. Girodet used much of his time on literary composition. His poem ''Le Peintre'' (rather a string of commonplaces), together with poor imitations of classical poets, and essays on ''Le Génie'' and ''La Grâce'', were published posthumously in 1829, with a biographical notice by his friend

Coupin de la Couperie Marie-Philippe Coupin de la Couperie (1773, Sèvres - 1851, Versailles (city), Versailles) was a French painter of the Troubadour style. He was a friend of the painter Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson. Among his patrons were Joséphine de B ...

. Delecluze, in his ''Louis David et son temps'', has also a brief life of Girodet. ''Girodet: Romantic Rebel'' at the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...

(2006) was the first retrospective in the United States devoted to the works of Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson. The exhibition assembled more than 100 seminal works (about 60 paintings and 40 drawings) that demonstrated the artist's range as a painter as well as a draftsman.

Analysis of the works

Girodet was trained in the neoclassical style of his teacher,

, seen in his treatment of the male nude body and his reference to models from the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

and

Classical antiquity Classical antiquity, also known as the classical era, classical period, classical age, or simply antiquity, is the period of cultural History of Europe, European history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD comprising the inter ...

. However, he also deviated from this style in several ways. The peculiarities which mark Girodet's position as the herald of the

romantic movement Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

are already evident in his ''Sleep of Endymion'' (1791, also called ''Effet de lune'' or "effect of the Moon"). Although the subject matter and pose are inspired by classical precedents, Girodet's diffuse lighting is more theatrical and atmospheric. The androgynous depiction of the sleeping shepherd Endymion is also noteworthy. These early romantic effects were even more notable in his ''Ossian'', exhibited in 1802. Girodet portrayed recently killed Napoleonic soldiers being welcomed into

Valhalla In Norse mythology, Valhalla ( , ; , )Orchard (1997:171–172) is described as a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god Odin. There were five possible realms the soul could travel to after death. The first was Fólkvang ...

by the fictional bard Ossian. The painting is striking for its inclusion of phosphorescent meteors, vaporous luminosity, and spectral protagonists. The same coupling of classic and romantic elements marks Girodet's ''Danae'' (1799) and his ''Quatre Saisons,'' executed for the king of Spain (repeated for Compiègne), and shows itself to a ludicrous extent in his ''Fingal'' ( Leuchtenberg collection, St. Petersburg), executed for

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 ...

in 1802. Girodet can be seen here combining aspects of his classical training and traditional education with new literary trends, popular scientific spectacles, and a consummate interest in the strange and the bizarre. In this way his work announces the rise of a romantic aesthetic which prizes individuality, expression, and imagination over an adherence to classical academic precedents.

Gallery

File:Girodet Brutus 1785.jpg, ''Brutus condemns his sons to death'' (''Brutus condamne ses fils à mort''), 1785 File:Jacques-Louis David - Oath of the Horatii - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Oath of the Horatii'' (''Le Serment des Horaces'', copy after David's original), 1786, Toledo Museum of Art, Ohio File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson - Coriolanus Taking Leave of his Family - 2019.169.1 - National Gallery of Art.jpg, '' Coriolanus Taking Leave of His Family'', 1786 File:Girodet La mort de Tatius.jpg, '' The Death of Tatius'' (''La mort de Tatius''), 1788,

Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Angers The Musée des beaux-arts d'Angers is a museum of art located in a mansion, the "logis Barrault", place Saint-Éloi near the historic city of Angers, western France. Building The museum is part of the Toussaint complex, which includes the gar ...

File:Girodet Joseph reconnu par ses frères.JPG, '' Joseph Recognised by His Brothers'', 1789, , Paris File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson - Portrait d'une jeunesse.jpg, ''Portrait of a Youth'' (''Portrait d'une jeunesse''), ,

Smith College Museum of Art The Smith College Museum of Art, abbreviated SCMA, is the art museum of Smith College, located in Northampton, Massachusetts, Northampton, Massachusetts. First established in 1870, the museum is part of the American Alliance of Museums, Five Coll ...

, Northampton, Massachusetts File:Longchamp081 Girodet Fravega.jpg, ''Portrait of Giuseppe Fravega'' (''ministre'' of the Ligurian Republic in Paris), 1796, Musée des beaux-arts de Marseille File:Benoît Agnès Trioson by Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson, 1797.jpg, ''Benoît-Agnès Trioson regardant des figures dans un livre'', 1797, Musée Girodet, Montargis File:Anne-Louis Girodet De Roucy-Trioson - Portrait of J. B. Belley, Deputy for Saint-Domingue - WGA09508.jpg, '' Portrait of Jean-Baptiste Belley'', 1797,

Palace of Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

Image:Girodet-Trioson - Mademoiselle Lange as Venus, 1798.jpg, '' Mademoiselle Lange as Venus'', 1798, , Leipzig File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson - Portrait of Mlle. Lange as Danae - 69.22 - Minneapolis Institute of Arts.jpg, '' Portrait of Mlle. Lange as Danae'', 1799, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minnesota Image:The Meeting of Orestes and Hermione.jpg, ''The Meeting of

Orestes In Greek mythology, Orestes or Orestis (; ) was the son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, and the brother of Electra and Iphigenia. He was also known by the patronymic Agamemnonides (), meaning "son of Agamemnon." He is the subject of several ...

and Hermione'', File:Anne-Louis Girodet De Roucy-Trioson - Benoît-Agnes Trioson - WGA09505.jpg, ''Benoît-Agnes Trioson'', 1800,

, Paris Image:Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson 001.jpg, ''

Ossian Ossian (; Irish Gaelic/Scottish Gaelic: ''Oisean'') is the narrator and purported author of a cycle of epic poems published by the Scottish poet James Macpherson, originally as ''Fingal'' (1761) and ''Temora (poem), Temora'' (1763), and later c ...

receiving the Ghosts of the French Heroes'', , Château de Malmaison File:Anne Louis Girodet de Roucy-Trioson - Portrait de Napoleon I (Versailles).jpg, ''Napoleon Bonaparte, Premier Consul'', Palais de l'Elysée Image:Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson 005.jpg, ''Portrait of Dominique-Jean Larrey'' (military surgeon in Napoleon's army), 1804, Louvre File:Portrait of the Katchef Dahouth, Christian Mameluke, 1804, by Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson - Art Institute of Chicago - DSC09533.JPG, ''Portrait of the Katchef Dahouth, Christian Mameluke'', 1804,

Image:Carlo Maria Bonaparte.jpg, '' Charles Marie Bonaparte''
(father of

Napoléon Bonaparte 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 ...

), 1806 File:Study for "Portrait of an Indian" MET DP135221.jpg, Study for ''Portrait of an Indian'', ,

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

, New York File:Madame Erneste Bioche de Misery by Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson.jpg, ''Madame Erneste Bioche de Misery'', 1807,

National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's National museums of Canada, national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the List of large ...

, Ottawa File:Napoleon en de sleutels van wenen.jpg, '' Napoleon Receiving the Keys of Vienna'', 1808 Image:Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson 006.jpg, '' Portrait of Chateaubriand'', 1809, , Saint-Malo File:Hortense de Beauharnais.jpg, ''Portrait of

Hortense de Beauharnais Hortense Eugénie Cécile Bonaparte (; , ; 10 April 1783 – 5 October 1837) was Kingdom of Holland, Queen of Holland as the wife of King Louis Bonaparte. She was the stepdaughter of Emperor Napoléon I as the daughter of his first wife, Joséphi ...

, Queen of Holland, wife of King Louis Napoleon'', , , Amsterdam File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson - Esquisse pour ‚La révolte du Caire‘ (ca. 1809).jpg, Sketch for '' The Revolt of Cairo'', ,

Cleveland Museum of Art The Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) is an art museum in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Located in the Wade Park District of University Circle, the museum is internationally renowned for its substantial holdings of Asian art, Asian and Art of anc ...

File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson - La révolte du Caire (ca. 1810).jpg, '' The Revolt of Cairo'', oil and Indian ink on paper, ,

Image:Girodet .jpg, '' The Revolt of Cairo'', 1810 File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson - Portrait de Louis-Charles Balzac (1811).jpg, ''Portrait of Charles-Louis Balzac'', 1811, Dallas Museum of Art File:Napoleon I (by Anne Louis Girodet de Roucy-Trioson).jpg, ''Napoleon I in Coronation Robes'' (''Napoléon en costume impérial''), ,

Bowes Museum The Bowes Museum is an art museum, art gallery in the town of Barnard Castle, in County Durham in northern England. It was built to designs by Jules Pellechet and John Edward Watson to house the art collection of John Bowes (art collector), Jo ...

, England File:Anne-Louis Girodet - Portrait de Prosper de Barante.jpg, ''Portrait of Prosper de Barante'', 1814, Musée d'art Roger-Quilliot,

Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...

File:Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson - Allegory of Victory, 1814.jpg, ''Allegory of Victory'', ,

Château de Compiègne The Château de Compiègne is a French château, a former royal residence built for Louis XV and later restored by Napoleon. Compiègne was one of three seats of royal government, the others being Versailles and Fontainebleau. It is located i ...

File:Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson - Aurora, 1814-15.jpg, ''Aurora'', , Château de Compiègne File:Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson - Minerva between Apollo and Mercury, 1814-15.jpg, ''Minerva between Apollo and Mercury'', , Château de Compiègne Image:Cathelineau.jpg, ''

Jacques Cathelineau Generalissimo Jacques Cathelineau (; 5 January 1759 – 14 July 1793) was a French Vendéan insurrectionist leader during the Revolution. He was known among his followers as the Saint of Anjou. He was a well known peddler in Anjou. When the ...

, généralissime vendéen'', 1816, Musée d'art et d'histoire de Cholet File:Bonchamps.jpg, ''Charles-Melchior Arthus, Marquis de Bonchamps'', 1816, Musée d'art et d'histoire de Cholet Image:0 Pygmalion et Galatée - A-L. Girodet - RF 2002-4 - Louvre 2.JPG, '' Pygmalion et Galatée'', 1819, File:Anne-Louis Girodet de Roucy-Trioson - Tête d'une femme dans un turban.jpg, ''Head of a Woman in a Turban'', ,

Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and holds the large ...

, Saint Petersburg File:Girodet Madame Reiset.jpg, ''Portrait de Madame Reizet assise'', 1820 Madame Jacques-Louis-Étienne Reizet (Colette-Désirée-Thérèse Godefroy, 1782–1850) MET DP135222.jpg, '' Portrait of Madame Reiset'', 1823,

File:Jacques-Joseph de Cathelineau.jpg, ''Portrait of Jacques-Joseph de Cathelineau (1787–1832)'', son of the ''généralissime'' File:Capaneus – Study called The Blasphemic (Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson) - Nationalmuseum - 183684.tif, ''Capaneus, Leader of The Seven against Thebes'' (''Tête du Blasphémateur''), study for ''Les sept chefs devant Thèbes'',

Nationalmuseum Nationalmuseum is the List of national galleries, national gallery of fine arts of Sweden, located on the peninsula Blasieholmen in central Stockholm. The museum's operations stretch far beyond the borders of Blasieholmen, including the Natio ...

, Stockholm File:François-René de Chateaubriand by Anne-Louis Girodet de Roucy Trioson.jpg, Undated portrait of

File:Girodet - Docteur Trioson montargis.jpg, ''Portrait du Docteur Trioson donnant une leçon de géographie à son fils'', undated, Musée Girodet, Montargis File:Anne-Louis Girodet De Roucy-Trioson - Portrait of Joachim Murat - WGA09511.jpg, ''Portrait of

Joachim Murat Joachim Murat ( , also ; ; ; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French Army officer and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the military titles of Marshal of the ...

'' (?), Hermitage Museum

References

External links

Miscellaneous works
(

Art Renewal Center The Art Renewal Center (ARC) is a non-profit, educational organization, which hosts an online museum dedicated to realist art. The ARC was founded by New Jersey businessman, author, and art collector Fred Ross. Particular emphasis is given to ...

)
Three portraits by Girodet
(''Insecula'' encyclopedia)
Works of Girodet at http://www.the-athenaeum.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Girodet de Roussy-Trioson, Anne-Louis 1767 births 1824 deaths People from Montargis 18th-century French painters 19th-century French painters Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery Knights of the Legion of Honour French male painters French romantic painters Prix de Rome for painting Pupils of Jacques-Louis David French Orientalist painters 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists