James Gabriel Huquier, originally Jacques-Gabriel (1730–1805) was a portrait-painter and engraver. He was the son of the

roccoco Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

engraver

Gabriel Huquier Gabriel Huquier (1695–1772) was an entrepreneurial French drawer (artist), engraver, printmaker, publisher, and art collector, who became a pivotal figure in the production of French 18th-century ornamental etchings and engravings Biography ...

and his wife Marie-Ann (Desvignes). One of Huquier's subjects was

Chevalier d'Eon Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d' ...

, an early transvestite.

Life

Huquier was born in Paris in 1730.http://www.pastellists.com/articles/huquier.pdf His father was an engraver in the style of Watteau and Boucher. His father's work based on the style of J. A. Meissonnier and Oppenord helped set styles in Louis XV's reign with regard to furniture, silver, and other decorative ornament. James Huquier assisted his father in many of his engravings. He married Anne Louise, the daughter of the engraver

Jacques Chéreau Jacques Chéreau (29 October 1688 in Blois, France – 1 December 1776 in Paris) was a portrait engraver, printmaker and publisher of optical prints in a neighborhood of printmakers at the Rue Saint-Jacques variously given on prints as "au Gran ...

, in 1758 in Paris. He collaborated as an engraver and printseller with his father-in-law. They created a shop that sold wallpapers and prints in 1764 and two years later they had a wallpaper factory. The business appears to have struggled, however, and after making a number of excursions, Huquier left his family behind and moved to England. Mr and Mrs Hall huqier

Huquier emigrated to England with his father. He exhibited some pastels at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

and was also represented at the Society of Artists. Huquier also completed a number of pastel portraits which sold well. He had a self-portrait in the

in 1771 and in 1785. The pastels illustrated are on paper and are of Mr Hall, a Bristol-based glass manufacturer, and his wife. One of Huquier's more remarkable subjects was

, a French spy who served as an ambassador in London. Chevalier d'Eon was notably transvestite and an early transgender person . The Chevalier spent the end of her life living as a woman. In 1783, Huquier lived in Cambridge but later retired to

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire (district), Shropshire, England. It is sited on the River Severn, northwest of Wolverhampton, west of Telford, southeast of Wrexham and north of Hereford. At the 2021 United ...

. As Huquier's wife Anne Louise had already died, he may have thought to benefit when his father-in-law and collaborator died. In the event, however, his three daughters Julie-Marie, Rosalie, and Anne-Geneviève were left shares, and were made wards of their cousin, Jacques-Francois Chéreau. Huquier died on 7 June 1805.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Huquier, James Gabriel 1725 births 1805 deaths 18th-century French painters French male painters 19th-century French painters 18th-century French engravers 19th-century French engravers Pastel artists Painters from Paris 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists