Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin
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Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin (November 2, 1699 – December 6, 1779) is considered by some to be the greatest of the 18th-century French painters. Breaking away from the style of the times, Chardin was Anti-Rococo. He favoured simple still lives and unsentimental domestic interiors. He is known for his beautifully textured still lives as well as his sensitive and touching genre paintings. He was born, lived and died in Paris. Simple, even stark, but treasured paintings of common household items (Still Life with a Smoker's Box) and an uncanny ability to portray children's innocence in a nonsentimental manner (Boy with a Top [below]) account for his timeless appeal.
He was the son of a cabinetmaker, and though largely self-taught, he was greatly influenced by the realism and subject matter of the 17th-century Low Country masters. His early support came from patrons in the French aristocracy, including Louis XV, despite his unconventional portrayal of the then-rising bourgeoisie. He was admitted to the Royal Academy in 1728. Today his paintings hang in the Louvre and other major museums. His work became popular with the general public after low-cost engravings of his paintings became available.
He is much admired for his still life work and portraiture in pastels which are now highly valued. His self-portrait (top right), which is most often used as a reference, was produced using pastels.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Artcylopedia: Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin.
[edit] External links
- Getty Museum: Chardin.
- WebMuseum: Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin.
- Artchive: Chardin.
- Artcylopedia: Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin - identifies where Chardin's work is a Galleries and Museums around the world.
- Web Gallery of Art: Chardin.
- WorldWide Art Resources - lists location of artwork in museum collections.
