Nicolas de Largillière

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Nicolas de Largillière
Self-portrait of Nicolas de Largillierre.
Born	10 October 1656 (1656-10-10) Paris, France
Died	20 March 1746 (aged 89) Paris, France
Nationality	French
Field	Painter
Training	Antwerp
Movement	Rococo
Influenced by	Sir Peter Lely, Adam Frans van der Meulen
Influenced	Jean-Baptiste Oudry, Jacob van Schuppen

Self-portrait of Nicolas de Largillierre.
Engraving by François Chereau (1715).

Study of hands
(Musée du Louvre)

Nicolas de Largillière (October 10, 1656 - March 20, 1746), French painter, was born in Paris.

His father, a merchant, took him to Antwerp at the age of three, and as a boy he spent nearly two years in London. The attempt to turn his attention to business having failed, he entered, some time after his return to Antwerp, the studio of Goubeau - quitting this at the age of eighteen to seek his fortune in England, where he was befriended by Lely, who employed him for four years at Windsor.

His skill attracted the notice of Charles II, who wished to retain him in his service, but the fury aroused against Roman Catholics by the Rye House Plot alarmed Largillière, and he went to Paris, where he was well received by Le Brun and Van der Meulen. In spite of his Flemish training, his reputation, especially as a portrait-painter, was soon established; his brilliant colour and lively touch attracted all the celebrities of the day--actresses, public men and popular preachers flocking to his studio. President Lambert, with his beautiful wife and daughter, are amongst his most noted subjects.

It is said that James II recalled Largillière to England on his accession to the throne in 1685, that he declined the office of keeper of the royal collections, but that, during a short stay in London, he painted portraits of the king, the queen and the Prince of Wales. This last is impossible, as the birth of the prince did not take place till 1688; the three portraits painted by Largillière of the prince in his youth must therefore all have been executed in Paris, to which city he returned some time before March 1686, when he was received by the Academy as a member, and presented as his diploma picture the fine portrait of Le Brun, now in the Louvre.

He was received as an historical painter; but, although he occasionally produced works of that class (Crucifixion, engraved by Roettiers), and also treated subjects of still life, it was in historical portraits that he excelled. Horace Walpole states that he left in London those of Pierre van der Meulen and of Sybrecht. Several of his works are at Versailles. The church of St Etienne du Mont at Paris contains the finest example of Largillière's work when dealing with large groups of figures; it is an ex voto offered by the city to St Genevieve, painted in 1694, and containing portraits of all the leading officers of the municipality. Largillière passed through every post of honour in the Academy, until in 1743 he was made chancellor.

Jean-Baptiste Oudry was the most distinguished of his pupils. Largillière's work found skilful interpreters in Van Schuppen, Edelinck, Desplaces, Pierre Drevet, Pitou and other engravers. His nephew, Jacob van Schuppen, was also a painter. The artistic period of Louis XIV (1638-1715) is mainly remembered for the portrait of the ‘Roi Soleil’ by Hyacinthe Rigaud of 1701, and the founding of the academy under Largillière’s fellow painter ‘Charles Le Brun. No artist however captured the court and fashions of France at this time as closely as Nicolas de Largillière, who is however the least remembered of the artists in the service of Louis XIV, despite having a wonderful talent with oils; Largillière’s works have not received the iconic status that the work of Rigaud, Largillière’s friend and rival have enjoyed.

Upon the ascension of King James II (1685-1688), Largillière was invited back to England and he was offered the office of the keeping of the royal collections, still uneasy after the horror of 1683, Largillière politely rejected. Largillière did however spend a short time in London, in this time Largillière painted King James in 1686, showing the Stuart king in fine golden amour with a white cravat standing out from the rest of the painting, and a blended, watercolour like background, in a rounded frame. As with any successful Baroque portrait painter, painting wig curls, like painting fur 200 years earlier, was vital for success in the royal courts. In this portrait and many others, Largillière does this brilliantly. Also whilst in London, Largillière also started a portrait of the Queen, similar to Largillière’s portrait of Mari-Anne de Bourbon from the 1690s, and Largillière also painted a portrait of the Prince of Wales, which must have been executed in Paris after 1688, the Prince’s birth year. Two years earlier in Paris, Largillière produced a portrait of the painter Charles Le Brun for his admittance to the French Academy. The portrait is probably Largillière’s greatest and his most recognized portrait of the 17th Century, showing Le Brun at work on an Entombment, surrounded by classical busts and figurines scattered on the floor and table. It is very likely that Largillière’s portrait was based on a self portrait by Le Brun, from around the same time, .1688. In the portrait by Le Brun, we see the same inquisitive gaze, and the same, fine clothes worn by the great painter. Le Brun at the time was the chairman of the Academy at the time, and under his leadership, the Academy reaches its greatest heights and under Louis XIV. Le Brun, so flattered by the portrait, accepted Largillière to the Academy as an honoured member. In 1690, Largillière is documented by the French Academy as a historical painter, one of the largest artistic trends of the French academy up to Manet. However although Largillière excels himself with these historical works, the greatest of which came in 1694 when Largillière decorated part of the St.Etienne du Mont in Paris in 1694, his forte is definitely with portraits of the nobles of Baroque Paris. In the St Etienne du Mont, Largillière masterfully handles the large number of figures; the canvases are also thought to be an ex-voto to the city of St.Genevieve. Another historical painting by Largillière, ‘The Entry of Christ into Jerusalem’, of 1720, shows Largillière’s landscape painting ability. Both these works excelled Largillière further up the Hierarchy of the French Academy.

In 1693, Largillière painted the Governor of Arras, Pierre de Montesquiou, to celebrate his promotion to brigadier in 1691. Largillière is conservative is his strokes; the duke confident in his pose and elegant in his wares, shown in the quality and realism of the face and clothes, credited to this technique. Since Velázquez’s ‘El Nino de Vallecas’, Baroque portrait painters have traditionally added a landscape in the background of all if not most of their portraits. Largillière’s first portrait to demonstrate this element was also his greatest work is in the field of portraiture, painted in around 1700, and probably Largillière’s most realistic work, ‘Man in a purple Robe’, now in Kassel is a wonder of eighteenth century portraiture. The delicate handling of the curls on the wig, and the penetrating but warming gaze of the sitter, makes this one of the masterpieces of the High Baroque. Largillière allows for quite a free handling of paint in many areas, and so differs from delicate Rigaud. The style is very similar to the portrait of Charles Boucher two years later, where Largillière creates strong shadows and contrasts to sculpt Boucher’s face and mould the hair on his flowing wig. In this painting, Largillière uses similar poses, lightings and oil techniques to Velázquez, and his own of this period. Probably Largillière’s most challenging work came in 1709. ‘The Family of Louis XIV’, shows the king and queen, the future Louis XV and the Duc du Biron. The King displays a sense of slight uneasiness unlike the other figures especially the Duc du Biron. In the painting, Largillière displays the three artistic disciplines, a landscape, behind the Prince, a still life behind the queen, and of course, the portraits of the Bourbon. In the painting, Largillière uses old the Renaissance technique of structured disposition, the line of view between the figures. A year later, Largillière painted a self portrait, the only fully lit and outdoor self portrait with two female members of his family, believed to be his wife and daughter both delicately painted using pale tones. The sunset background is typical of Largillière and of the period. The portrait is the only self portrait by Largillière to be of a different pose, as the rest of Largillière’s self portraits of the 1600s onwards show the artist at his easel in darkness. In 1714, Largillière painted one of his best known, however unconventional, works. ‘The Study of Different Types of Hands’ now in the Louvre, is strikingly realistic and proves Largillière’s skill at this subject, a hurdle at which many artists have fallen. The hands show Largillière’s large oil spectrum. From areas of thick paint, the hands, to others with very thin layers, areas of fabric. This is one of the secrets of Largillière’s magnificent feel for textures. In that same year 1714, Largillière painted the Duke of Saxony, Frederick the Strong, in armour and a fine wig, with a panoramic landscape view behind the pompous figure. The portrait is almost identical in composition to Largillière’s portrait of the Duc de Biron showing a similar figure to the former, painted in the same year. Largillière also painted the artist Jacques-Antoine Arlaud in a fine red robe in a similar fashion to Largillière’s portrait of the painter Charles Le Brun. Largillière also painted the sculptor Nicolas Couston in a similar fashion.

In 1718, Largillière painted the French poet and essayist Voltaire. The portrait is probably Largillière’s most confrontational portrait, as Voltaire stares, grinning at us out of the blue, murky background; we cannot help but answer back. In this way Largillière has succeeded. The painting is talking to us and we are answering back. Towards the end of his life, Largillière painted more and more male anonymous portraits of Parisian nobles. One of the first examples of these is painted in 1710, of an anonymous man, standing in typical Baroque pose of spread fingers and concealing a letter in the other hand. Probably the most notable aspect of the painting is the striking red robe, flowing in front of the man, an evening reddish landscape in the distance and the stunning ‘Hals’ like quality of the face. Another portrait of around 1715 shows a head and shoulders three quarter view of a man staring out at us, in similar clothes to the previously mentioned portrait and wig, and a Doric column behind. This portraits pose and background is remarkably similar to the ‘Portrait of Anne Louis Comte Richebourg’, painted in 1734 when Largillière was 77years of age. Another anonymous portrait of 1420, showing a wealthy gentleman, in the finest lace and wig, a Doric column overlooking a background is painted at Largillière’s peak of portraiture. As with the ‘Man in a purple Robe’, Largillière’s dazzling skill of creating a warming expression is clearly visible, as with many of these portraits.

Largillière’s last self portrait came in 1725, a self portrait in his traditional pose of the 1711 portrait, that all his self portraits follow of the artist at his easel, look away from the easel and towards us, apart from his ‘Self Portrait with Two Family Members’. As always, Largillière’s skill of representing different textures in paint is shown to amazing affect. Largillière also uses Caravaggio’s ‘chiaroscuro’ technique of light against dark. Largillière’s last grand administrative achievement was in 1743, three years before his death, when he was appointed as chancellor of the French Academy, a great achievement for France’s most prolific portrait painter of this period. Upon his death, Largillière left several small landscapes and still lives, rarely seen before his death and donated to the people of France. One of the best examples is ‘Wooded Landscape’, now in the Louvre, a studio version of an original sketch. Largillière brought the Baroque of Le Brun and previous artists, added more lighting, and realism, deposing the favored airbrushing ideas in many of his works. Largillière removed style from his sitters; no large eye sockets or rosy cheeks, just the sitter as they really were. Largillière captured the High Baroque’s fashions and people for the world to see, rather than the pious Louis XIV, Largillière shows us the nobles and gentry in amazing detail and truth. Despite these and more portraits of nobles and royalty, Largillière has not been remembered as the great painter that he was. The period is never remembered for its painting; however, Le Brun, Rigaud and Largillière will achieve more fame hopefully in the future. At the age of 89, Nicolas de Largillière died on the March 20, 1746, leaving his pupil Nicolas Oudry a firm base on which to build an artistic career.

The Ashmolean Museum (University of Oxford), the Fitzwilliam Museum (University of Cambridge), the Honolulu Academy of Arts, the Louvre, the National Gallery of Art (Washington D.C.) and Pinacoteca di Brera (Milan) are among the public collections holding works by Nicolas de Largillière.

[edit] Gallery

Portrait of Elizabeth Throckmorton	Portrait Of Augustus III of Poland	Portrait of Louise-Madeleine Bertin, Countess of Montchal	Portrait of a Man in a Purple Robe
Study of Hands, (c.1715)	Portrait of Voltaire	Self-portrait with family	Portrait of Marguerite Bécaille
Portrait of Pierre-Joseph Titon de Cogny	Portrait of Jeanne-Cécile Le Guay de Montgermon	Portrait of a Gentleman (possibly Pierre Van Schuppen)	Portrait of Jean-Baptiste Tavernier

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.