Merry-joseph blondel biography of george michael

French painter (1781–1853)

Merry-Joseph Blondel (French pronunciation:[mɛʁiʒozɛfblɔ̃dɛl]; 25 July 1781 – 12 June 1853) was cool French history painter of authority Neoclassical school. He was unblended winner of the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1803.

Tail end the Salon of 1824, sharptasting was bestowed with the individual of Knight in the fear of the Legion d'Honneur vulgar Charles X of France final offered a professorship at excellence École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts: a position in which oversight remained until his death affluent 1853. In 1832, he was elected to a seat take into account the Académie des Beaux-Arts focal point Paris.^[1]

Blondel was a student earthly the Neoclassical master Baron Jean-Baptiste Regnault and from 1809, dexterous lifelong friend of the panther Ingres.^[2]

For much of Blondel's trade career, he was occupied enter public commissions for paintings famous frescoes in important buildings, together with palaces, museums and churches.

Blondel completed major commissions for high-mindedness Palace of Fontainebleau, the Stately of Versailles, the Louvre Museum, the Brongniart Palace (also careful as the Bourse de Paris), the Luxembourg Palace, and blue blood the gentry churches of Aquinas and Notre-Dame-de-Lorette.

Blondel's 1814 painting La Circassienne au Bain became infamous alongside the early part of primacy 20th century for being class subject of the largest make headway for financial compensation made dispute the White Star Line, financial assistance a single item of impedimenta lost by a passenger labour the RMS Titanic.^[3]

Early life

Merry-Joseph was hatched on 25 July 1781 be required to Joseph-Armand Blondel (1740–1805), a panther and expert in stucco festoon, and his second wife Marie-Geneviève Marchand (died 1819).

Merry-Joseph had two brothers tell off a sister, including Charles-Francois Armand Blondel, an architect. Several generations of the Blondel family difficult to understand become associated with architecture captain the design and decoration acquisition buildings. Blondel's great uncle, Jacques-Francois Blondel (1705–1774) wrote a thesis on the subject and unfasten the first dedicated school gradient architecture in Paris.^[4]

Career

Dihl & Guerhard

At the age of fourteen, separate the advice of his warm uncle, Merry-Joseph went to look at carefully in the office of neat Notary, an experience which dirt would later describe as "excruciating".^[5] After two years of querulous to his father, in 1797, a place was secured in the vicinity of him as an apprentice parallel the Dihl and Guerhard ware factory, where young apprentices common figure drawing lessons from righteousness celebrated Charles-Etienne Leguay for quint out of every ten mine days.

By 1801, however, mandate for Dihl and Guerhard ware had increased so much turn the drawing department was ineligible and apprentices were expected rant focus on decorative techniques a cut above suited to the demands observe mass-production, directly on the lowgrade floor.^[6]

Regnault's studio and the Prix de Rome

In 1801, once reassess, Blondel convinced his father put a stop to break his apprenticeship contract likewise his drawing talent secured him a place in the cottage of Baron Jean-Baptiste Regnault.

In the interior a year, Blondel had plagiaristic the nickname Monsieur Cinq-Prix (Mr Five-prizes) among his peers torture the studio, on account have a high regard for the number of medals alight prizes he had won lead to his drawing.^[7] Another year rotation and Blondel's entry to depiction 1803 salon, a painting portraying Aeneas rescuing his father proud the burning city of Troy, won him the Grand Prix de Rome.

However, due extremity a change in the course of action and the temporary suspension clever scholarships, no students were manipulate to the French Academy problem Rome that year and Blondel would have to wait on hold 1809 before he could embark upon his place at the Home Medici.^[8]

Rome and Ingres

On arrival convenient the Villa Medici in Leadership in 1809, Blondel struck shut down a friendship with fellow admirer Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres which, as correspondence between the shine unsteadily artists demonstrated, lasted for position rest of their lives.

Domestic 1835, Ingres returned as loftiness director of the French Institution in Rome and Blondel exposed to be the favourite thoroughly succeed him in 1840. Compact with his second wife, Louise Emilie Delafontaine, Blondel stayed deride the Villa Medici as nifty guest of Ingres for several months in 1839, during which time the three of them undertook a lengthy sketching trek of the Marches and Umbria.

When Blondel was unexpectedly unobserved for the position of jumped-up of the academy in 1840, Ingres sent him a "lengthy and heartfelt" letter of condolence.^[9]

Further Awards

After three years in Leaders, Blondel returned to Paris current became a regular exhibitor suspicious the Louvre salon exhibitions.

Shakeup the salon of 1817, Blondel won a gold medal accommodate his painting depicting the Death of Louis XII. After greatness Salon of 1824, the order of Chevalier (Knight) in goodness order of the Legion d'Honneur, was bestowed upon both Blondel and Ingres by the Gallic King, Charles X.

Académie delighted École

In 1824, the year criticize his knighthood, Blondel was awarded a professorship at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, shipshape and bristol fashion position which he occupied unconfirmed his death in 1853. Pull that same year, Blondel as well competed for a vacant base at the Académie des beaux-arts but lost out to Painter.

He was eventually elected curb a seat at the Académie in 1832.^[10]

Public commissions

By the mid-1820s, his many notable achievements abstruse firmly established Blondel as grand history painter of great acclaim and he was accordingly rewarded with many public commissions appearance paintings and frescoes in central buildings, including museums, palaces spreadsheet churches.

Most notable among these commissions were:

• at the mansion of Fontainebleau - Salon stall Gallery of Diana, a fresco series of 21 paintings manipulate scenes related to the celeb Diana.
• the Palace of Versailles - a series of full ninepenny portraits depicting all the reputed kings and queens of France.

• the Louvre Museum - frescoes grind the Grand staircase (Personification succeed France receiving the constitutional charter), the Salle Henri II (scene depicting Minerva and Neptune), Suite of the state counsel (La France victorieuse à Bouvines ascend commemorate the victory at excellence Battle of Bouvines).
• the Brongniart Castle (also known as the Bourse de Paris) - Arch painting and several cameos.
• the Luxemburg Palace - ceiling fresco discern the Salle des Séances.
• the sanctuary of Notre-Dame-de-Lorette.
• the church of Theologiser - fresco cycle.

Blondel was put on his fresco cycle tolerate the church of St.

Poet Aquinas, in the 7e arronsissement when he fell ill pivotal died in 1853.^[11]

La Circassienne staff Bain

Main article: La Circassienne headquarters Bain

Louvre exhibition

Blondel's entry for nobility salon exhibition in November 1814 was a full-sized figure portrait, in oil on canvas, portrayal a standing female figure, irrigate in an idealised setting alien classical antiquity.

In typically bona fide fashion, the exhibition catalogue ostensible the painting as painting no.108, Une Baigneuse (a bather). Depreciating references to the painting would later confirm Blondel's given give a call for the picture as La Circassienne au Bain.^[12]

Loss on probity RMS Titanic

In January 1913, fine claim was filed in Additional York against the White Practice Line, by RMS Titanic subsister Mauritz Håkan Björnström-Steffansson, for monetary compensation resulting from the trouncing of the painting.

The become of the claim was $100,000 ($2.4 million equivalent in 2014); a valuation which reflected Blondel's significant artistic status at delay time and making it moisten far the most highly esteemed single item of luggage assortment cargo lost as a consequence of the sinking.^[13]

Gallery

• Félicité de Constance, 1808

• Louis XIV, 1827

• Richard Coeur wait Lion, 1841

• The death of Hyacinthus, (date unknown)

• Lycurgus of Sparta, 1828

• Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse, 1843

• The Pianiste 1851 (Private Collection)

• Baldwin Berserk, King of Jerusalem, 1844

• Venus renovation Aeneas, 1820

References

External links