Hubert Gravelot

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Hubert François Bourguignon (1699-1773), commonly known as Gravelot, was a French designer and engraver. Gravelot was a native Parisian and a pupil of Francois Boucher. He achieved distinction for his book illustrations and his rocaille designs for cabinet-makers, upholsterers, and metal workers. Gravelot lived in London from 1732 to 1745; while there, he taught Thomas Gainsborough. His illustrations of contemporary manners and costumes are known to have influenced English artists. Gravelot revitalized illustrative engraving in England, and after his return to Paris, a group of accomplished engravers continued to work in his manner. The descriptive precision and elegance of his line and the variety of his inventions can be seen in the drawings for two of his more important commissions, the second volume of Gay’s Fables and the second edition of L. Theobald's The Works of Shakespeare in Eight Volumes.

[edit] References

Gowing, L (ed.) 1995, A Biographical Dictionary of Artists, Rev. edn, Andromeda Oxford Limited, Oxfordshire.