Hyacinthe Rigaud, 'Antoine Pâris', probably 1724
About the work
Overview
Antoine Paris (1668–1733) was the son of a village innkeeper. With his brother Claude he helped provision French troops, eventually controlling all land and water transport supplying soldiers from Burgundy and the Auvergne. Antoine was appointed Royal Treasurer to Louis XIV in 1722, and this portrait was probably painted in 1724, two years before he fell from favour and was banished.
Rigaud was the most prestigious portraitist in France, known for his elegant and realistic portrayals of aristocrats, financiers and members of Louis XIV’s court. He shows Antoine seated in a library beside an elaborate table, clutching blue velvet drapery and turning as though to greet an unseen visitor. The gesture of Antoine’s right hand is one thought to be most appropriate for eloquent public speech. The fine characterisation of the head, a hallmark of Rigaud and his contemporary Largilliere, seems almost eclipsed by the grandeur of the setting and the dramatic, showy manner in which the draperies are painted.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- Antoine Pâris
- Artist
- Hyacinthe Rigaud
- Artist dates
- 1659 - 1743
- Date made
- probably 1724
- Medium and support
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 144.7 × 110.5 cm
- Inscription summary
- Signed
- Acquisition credit
- Bought, 1975
- Inventory number
- NG6428
- Location
- Not on display
- Collection
- Main Collection
- Frame
- 18th-century French Frame (original frame)
Provenance
Additional information
This painting is included in a list of works with incomplete provenance from 1933–1945; for more information see Whereabouts of paintings 1933–1945.
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Humphrey Wine, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: The Eighteenth Century French Paintings’, London 2018; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.
Exhibition history
-
2020Hyacinthe Rigaud or the Sun PortraitChâteau de Versailles17 November 2020 - 13 June 2021
Bibliography
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1919J. Roman (ed.), Le livre de raison du peintre Hyacinthe Rigaud, Paris 1919
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1973C. Colomer, La famille et le milieu social du peintre Rigaud, Perpignan 1973
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1980A. Laing, 'The Dealer's Gallery Note', The Burlington Magazine, CXXII, 1980
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1980E. Schleier, 'Image du Souverain et portrait officiel', in L'image de l'homme dans l'art occidental, Berlin 1980
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1981N. Bryson, Word and Image: French Painting of the Ancien Régime, Cambridge 1981
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1984M. O'Neill, 'Hyacinthe Rigaud's Drawings for His Engravers', The Burlington Magazine, CXXVI, 1984, pp. 674-83
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1990K. Ahrens, 'Honori praevia virtus: Une interprétation de l'architecture à l'arrière-plan du portrait officiel de Louis XIV peint par Rigaud en 1701', Gazette des beaux-arts, CXV, 1990, pp. 213-26
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1997N. Penny, Frames, London 1997
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1997A. James, 'Portrait et gravure: Rigaud et ses interprètes', in Visages du Grand Siècle. Le portrait français sous le règne de Louis XIV 1660-1715, Paris 1997, pp. 181-8
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1998D. Jarrassé, La peinture francaise au XVIIIe siècle, Paris 1998
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1998D. Posner, 'The Genesis and Political Purposes of Rigaud's Portraits of Louis Xiv and Philip V', Gazette des beaux-arts, CXXXI, 1998, pp. 77-90
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2000Musée Bossuet, Hyacinthe Rigaud, dessinateur (exh. cat. Musée Bossuet de Meaux, 2000), Dijon 2000
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2001
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
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2002J.-F. Méjanès, Maurice Quentin Delatour. La Marquise de Pompadour, Paris 2002
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2002A. Hollander, Fabric of Vision: Dress and Drapery in Painting (exh. cat. The National Gallery, 19 June - 8 September 2002), London 2002
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2002C. Jones, Madame de Pompadour: Images of a Mistress (exh. cat. The National Gallery, 16 October 2002 - 12 January 2003), London 2002
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2004S. Perreau, Hyacinthe Rigaud, 1659-1743: Le Peintre des Rois, Paris 2004
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2018Wine, Humphrey, National Gallery Catalogues: The Eighteenth Century French Paintings, London 2018
About this record
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.
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