Atelier de François-Pascal-Simon Baron Gérard Portrait of Louis XVIII (1755-1824),...
Studio of François-Pascal-Simon Gérard, called Baron Gérard
Rome 1770 - 1837 Paris
Portrait of Louis XVIII (1755-1824), King of France, full-length
Oil on canvas
258,7 x 182,5 cm ; 101⅞ by 71⅞ in.
We are grateful to Mr Alain Latreille, who confirmed the attribution of this painting to the Studio of Baron Gérard, based on photographs.
Catalogue Note:
Upon his accession to the throne of France, Louis XVIII was keen to revive the tradition of the grand official portrait. As soon as the Restoration had begun, he therefore commissioned Baron Gérard, whose career as a portraitist had by no means suffered an eclipse under the Empire—in fact, quite the contrary—to paint a portrait of him in coronation robes.
The original painting was exhibited at the Salon of 1814 as a manifesto of sorts: the king sought to make clear his return to the traditional monarchy. Gérard therefore depicts him seated on the throne in his coronation robes, draped in the royal blue velvet mantle, fleur-de-lis patterned and lined with ermine, accompanied by the traditional attributes of kingship under the Ancien Régime: the crown and the hand of justice, placed on a cushion beside him; the sceptre in his right hand; and the medal of the Order of the Holy Spirit. Each of these elements, in the minds of viewers in 1814, unmistakably evoked royal portraits from before 1789.
Like the other official portraits executed by Gérard both under the Empire and during the Restoration, this portrait of Louis XVIII was disseminated through numerous painted versions, most of them produced by Gérard’s studio, as well as through the engraving made by Massard (fig. 1). While the original was given by Louis XVIII to Talleyrand and remained in his family’s possession, its present whereabouts being unknown, some twenty other versions have been recorded, including the present one, probably executed by the studio, which unquestionably ranks among the finer-quality versions.
Gérard (perhaps with the assistance of his collaborators) also produced a small-scale ricordo of the work, intended to preserve a record of the original composition and now housed at the Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (inv. MV 4911; fig. 2).
Provenance:
Collection of Baron Seillière, Castle of Mello (Oise);
Anonymous sale, Sotheby's, Paris, 25 June 2008, lot 3;
Where acquired.
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
Studio of François-Pascal-Simon Gérard, called Baron Gérard
Rome 1770 - 1837 Paris
Portrait of Louis XVIII (1755-1824), King of France, full-length
Oil on canvas
258,7 x 182,5 cm ; 101⅞ by 71⅞ in.
We are grateful to Mr Alain Latreille, who confirmed the attribution of this painting to the Studio of Baron Gérard, based on photographs.
Catalogue Note:
Upon his accession to the throne of France, Louis XVIII was keen to revive the tradition of the grand official portrait. As soon as the Restoration had begun, he therefore commissioned Baron Gérard, whose career as a portraitist had by no means suffered an eclipse under the Empire—in fact, quite the contrary—to paint a portrait of him in coronation robes.
The original painting was exhibited at the Salon of 1814 as a manifesto of sorts: the king sought to make clear his return to the traditional monarchy. Gérard therefore depicts him seated on the throne in his coronation robes, draped in the royal blue velvet mantle, fleur-de-lis patterned and lined with ermine, accompanied by the traditional attributes of kingship under the Ancien Régime: the crown and the hand of justice, placed on a cushion beside him; the sceptre in his right hand; and the medal of the Order of the Holy Spirit. Each of these elements, in the minds of viewers in 1814, unmistakably evoked royal portraits from before 1789.
Like the other official portraits executed by Gérard both under the Empire and during the Restoration, this portrait of Louis XVIII was disseminated through numerous painted versions, most of them produced by Gérard’s studio, as well as through the engraving made by Massard (fig. 1). While the original was given by Louis XVIII to Talleyrand and remained in his family’s possession, its present whereabouts being unknown, some twenty other versions have been recorded, including the present one, probably executed by the studio, which unquestionably ranks among the finer-quality versions.
Gérard (perhaps with the assistance of his collaborators) also produced a small-scale ricordo of the work, intended to preserve a record of the original composition and now housed at the Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon (inv. MV 4911; fig. 2).
Provenance:
Collection of Baron Seillière, Castle of Mello (Oise);
Anonymous sale, Sotheby's, Paris, 25 June 2008, lot 3;
Where acquired.
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
