François-André Vincent
1746-1816
A Group of Elegantly Dressed Gentlemen
ca. 1778
16 1/8 x 18 7/8 inches (410 x 480 mm)
Pen and brown ink and wash, over black chalk, on paper, on its original mount.
1998.14
Purchased on the Sunny Crawford von Bülow Fund 1978.
Notes
Vincent was one of the leading French artists of the late eighteenth century, recognized for his talent in portraying both classical and historical scenes. He won the Prix de Rome in 1768, and spent the years 1771-75 at the French Academy in Rome under Charles-Joseph Natoire (1700-1777). He also traveled with fellow artist Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732-1806) and developed a bravura style of wash drawing.
The Morgan drawing is one of three known studies for the painting The Marquis de la Galaiziere Created Chancellor of Lorraine at the Château of Meudon by King Stanislaus of Poland, 18 January 1737. This work, along with its pendant, The New Chancellor Receiving Homage from the First President of the Sovereign Court of Lorraine at Nancy, March 21, 1737, was commissioned in 1778 by the marquis, Antoine-Martin Chaumont de La Galaizière (1697-1783), to decorate his château, Marleil-le-Guyon, and to celebrate his former role as chancellor.
The present sheet depicts the group of observers in front of and to the left of the column in the middle ground of the painting. The figures to the right of the column are the subject of another study in a French private collection (Cuzin 1987, fig. 33) [1], while the cluster of gentlemen surrounding King Stanislaus in the left foreground is depicted in a drawing in Montpellier (Musée Atger, A 5V 27; Nancy 2004, p. 118).[2] The Morgan sheet contains nine figures though in the painting Vincent omitted the man second from left who is indicated with a barely visible outline. The summary black chalk outline of the female figure at right describes a figure that appears to the right of the abbot in the painting. The three most prominent figures in the Morgan drawing have been identified by Pierre Boyé as family members of the marquis (from right to left): Henri-Ignace, abbé de La Galaizière; Jean-Baptiste, comte de Luçay; and the president de Marguerit (Boyé 1936, pp. 542-43).[3]
[1] Jean-Pierre Cuzin, François-Andre Vincent, 1746-1816, Cahiers du Dessin Français. vol. 4, Paris, 1987.
[2] Musée Historique Lorrain, Nancy, Stanislas; or, un roi de Pologne en Lorrain, 2004.
[3] Pierre Boye, “Le Chancelier Chaumont de La Galaizière et sa famille,” Part II, Le Pays Lorrain 28, no. 12 (December 1936), pp. 537-52.
The Morgan drawing is one of three known studies for the painting The Marquis de la Galaiziere Created Chancellor of Lorraine at the Château of Meudon by King Stanislaus of Poland, 18 January 1737. This work, along with its pendant, The New Chancellor Receiving Homage from the First President of the Sovereign Court of Lorraine at Nancy, March 21, 1737, was commissioned in 1778 by the marquis, Antoine-Martin Chaumont de La Galaizière (1697-1783), to decorate his château, Marleil-le-Guyon, and to celebrate his former role as chancellor.
The present sheet depicts the group of observers in front of and to the left of the column in the middle ground of the painting. The figures to the right of the column are the subject of another study in a French private collection (Cuzin 1987, fig. 33) [1], while the cluster of gentlemen surrounding King Stanislaus in the left foreground is depicted in a drawing in Montpellier (Musée Atger, A 5V 27; Nancy 2004, p. 118).[2] The Morgan sheet contains nine figures though in the painting Vincent omitted the man second from left who is indicated with a barely visible outline. The summary black chalk outline of the female figure at right describes a figure that appears to the right of the abbot in the painting. The three most prominent figures in the Morgan drawing have been identified by Pierre Boyé as family members of the marquis (from right to left): Henri-Ignace, abbé de La Galaizière; Jean-Baptiste, comte de Luçay; and the president de Marguerit (Boyé 1936, pp. 542-43).[3]
[1] Jean-Pierre Cuzin, François-Andre Vincent, 1746-1816, Cahiers du Dessin Français. vol. 4, Paris, 1987.
[2] Musée Historique Lorrain, Nancy, Stanislas; or, un roi de Pologne en Lorrain, 2004.
[3] Pierre Boye, “Le Chancelier Chaumont de La Galaizière et sa famille,” Part II, Le Pays Lorrain 28, no. 12 (December 1936), pp. 537-52.
Associated names
Gales, P., former owner.
Artist
Classification
Century Drawings
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