French painter
Nicolas-Antoine Taunay
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Self-portrait (crayon on paper)
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Born
| (
1755-02-10
)
10 February 1755
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Died
| 20 March 1830
(1830-03-20)
(aged 75)
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Nationality
| French
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Occupation
| Painter
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Nicolas-Antoine Taunay
(10 February 1755 ? 20 March 1830) was a French painter known best for his landscapes with scenes from ancient and modern history, mythology, and religion.
Early years
[
edit
]
Nicolas Antoine Taunay was born in
Paris
, France, in 1755. His father was an enamel painter.
Taunay entered the
Ecole des Beaux-Arts
in Paris at the age of fifteen and became a pupil of
Nicolas-Bernard Lepicie
. He later studied in the studios of
Nicolas-Guy Brenet
and
Francesco Giuseppe Casanova
.
He specialized in painting landscapes. Taunay first exhibited his work at the
Jeunesse
and
Salon de la Correspondance
. In 1784 he was admitted as an assistant at the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. He was now able to exhibit at official shows.
Taunay obtained a three-year scholarship to study at the
French Academy in Rome
in the
Palazzo Mancini
. While in Italy he met the artist
Jacques-Louis David
.
After returning to France in 1787 Taunay exhibited in the Paris
Salon
.
He married Josephine Rondel (1768?1844) soon after his return. They had six children, one of them being the also painter
Felix Taunay
, the father of French-Brazilian author
Alfredo d'Escragnolle Taunay
. He lived with his family in
Montmorency, Val-d'Oise
, during the
Reign of Terror
(1793?1794).
He returned to Paris in 1796 and joined the newly formed
Institut de France
. In 1805 he painted scenes of
Napoleon
's campaigns in Germany.
In 1806 he started contributing work to the
Manufacture de Sevres
. The
Empress Josephine
commissioned many paintings of battle scenes from him.
Brazil
[
edit
]
After the fall of Napoleon, Taunay moved to Brazil as a member of the
Missao Artistica Francesa
(French Artistic Mission), funded by King
John VI of Portugal
.
The
Missao Artistica Francesa
was organized by
Joachim Lebreton
. He had brought a group of artists to Brazil, arriving in
Rio de Janeiro
on 25 March 1816. These included the painter
Jean-Baptiste Debret
, Nicolas's brother the sculptor
Auguste Marie Taunay
, the engraver
Charles-Simon Pradier
and the architect
Auguste-Henri-Victor Grandjean de Montigny
. They were to form the nucleus of a royal art academy in Brazil.
Nicolas-Antoine Taunay became a member of the Royal School of Sciences, Arts and Trades, later to become the Imperial Academy of Beaux-Arts, as professor of landscape painting.
The arrival of the French group caused some controversy among the local Portuguese intelligentsia, who were concerned at the excessive influence being given to the French in developing the cultural life of Brazil. In turn, the French were unhappy with political appointments such as the appointment of Henrique Jose da Silva as head of the school in place of Lebreton, who had died in 1819. For this reason, Nicolas-Antoine Taunay returned to France in 1821,
holding the title of Baron of Taunay, granted by the Portuguese king.
[5]
Nicolas-Antoine Taunay died in 1830. During his lifetime, he was considered one of the greatest of the painters of the
First French Empire
.
After his death he was soon forgotten, although his work went through a revival in popularity in the 1870s organized by the
Goncourt brothers
.
Works
[
edit
]
Although his main interest was historical landscape painting, Nicolas-Antoine Taunay was also a skilled painter of portraits and battle scenes.
His style reflects Dutch and classical French influences.
-
Le bivouac des sans-coulottes
, 1790
-
Bravery and patriotism of French soldiers detained in prison
, 1794
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Heroism of the sailors of the ship of the line
Vengeur
under captain Renaudin
, 1795
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Le triomphe de la guillotine
, 1795
-
View of the bay and the entry of the city of Rio as seen from the terrace of the convent of Santo Antonio
, 1816
-
Carioca Square, Rio de Janeiro
, 1816
-
View from the Outeiro, the beach and the Church of Gloria
, c. 1817
-
View of Rio de Janeiro bay from the mountains in Tijuca
, c. 1820
-
Napolitan Festival
, 1824
-
Pastoral landscape
References
[
edit
]
Citations
Sources
- Fahy, Everett (2005-01-01).
"Nicolas-Antoine Taunay"
.
The Wrightsman Pictures
. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
ISBN
978-1-58839-144-5
. Retrieved
2014-02-17
.
- "Funerailles de M. Taunay"
,
Journal des artistes: annonce et compte rendu des ouvrages de peinture, sculpture, architecture, gravure, lithographie, poesie, musique et art dramatique
, Paris: Societe libre des beaux-arts, 4 April 1830, pp. 464?465.
- Lebrun, Claudine; Taunay, Nicolas Antoine (2003).
Nicolas-Antoine Taunay (1755-1830)
. ARTHENA, Association pour la diffusion de l'histoire de l'art.
ISBN
978-2-903239-36-7
. Retrieved
2014-02-17
.
- Sadlier, Darlene J. (2010-01-01).
Brazil Imagined: 1500 to the Present
. University of Texas Press.
ISBN
978-0-292-77473-5
. Retrieved
2014-02-15
.
- "Taunay, Nicolas Antoine (1755 - 1830)"
.
Encyclopedie Itau Cultural arts visuels
. 8 October 2013
. Retrieved
2014-02-17
.
- Williams, Daryle (2001-07-12).
Culture Wars in Brazil: The First Vargas Regime, 1930?1945
. Duke University Press.
ISBN
0-8223-2719-8
. Retrieved
2014-02-15
.
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