Jean-Baptiste Marie Pierre (Paris 1714 – 1789) French School, 1714-1789

 

Jean-Baptiste Marie Pierre was born in Paris on March 6, 1714 into a wealthy family of goldsmiths and jewelers. His father Jean Pierre was elected alderman in 1743, which ennobled him. This family affluence gave him access to academic studies with a tutor. Pierre became a pupil of painter Nicolas Bertin (1668-1736), then of Charles-Joseph Natoire (1700-1777). He attended the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, where he made friends with the engraver Charles-Nicolas Cochin le Fils (1715 - 1790). This friendship also led him to frequent the workshop of Cochin le Père (1688 - 1754), from whom he undoubtedly learned engraving and who introduced him to the art of Watteau.

 

In 1734, he won the Académie's Grand Prix for painting, with Sanson, whose Hair is cut by Dalila (current whereabouts unknown). He was then authorized to join the Académie de France in Rome, which was at that time under the direction of the painter Nicolas Vleughels (1688-1737). He stayed in Rome from June 1735 to June 1740.

 

Returning to Paris in 1740, he enjoyed great success and in 1752 became the first painter to the Duke of Orléans, for whom he painted several ceilings at the Palais-Royal and at the Château de Saint-Cloud. Between 1752 and 1757, he also painted two domes for the church of Saint-Roch in Paris. He became Premier Peintre du Roi (First Painter to the King) in 1770, following in the footsteps of François Boucher, and exerted a decisive influence on the art and artists of his time. He reserved his painting talents exclusively for royal commissions, and died on May 15, 1789, on the eve of the French Revolution.

 

2. A subject in the middle between bambochade and mythology ...

 

At first glance, the theme depicted here evokes a bambochade, one of those scenes of daily life widely represented in Pierre's work, particularly after his return from Italy in 1740. We present below an example with A Bridge, a painting dated 1749 from the Louvre Museum.

 

A closer look at our painting, however, reveals a different subject: our shepherd looks quite noble for a simple shepherd, his legs draped in a red stole, the purple evoking more the imperial dignity rather than the garb of a simple shepherd. His elegant sandals evoke the talaria, Mercury's famous winged sandals.

 

The cow on his left has a striking feature: an udder that appears to have only one teat, making it more reminiscent of a (generous) woman's bosom than an animal's udder! Our heifer (without its udder) is very close in composition to a drawing of two oxen harnessed together, made by Pierre during his stay in Italy and now preserved in the Library of the National Institute for Archeology and Art History in Rome.[1]

 

This scene is reminiscent of the legend of Io and Jupiter: Jupiter, having been caught with Io by Juno, transforms her into a heifer and offers her to his wife, who in turn entrusts her to the care of the terrible Argos, the giant with fifty pairs of eyes. Jupiter then sends Mercury to free the poor Io. Mercury manages to lull Argos to sleep with sweet music and decapitates him, allowing Io to escape.

 

The theme of Mercury and Argos was dealt with by Pierre, and it is entirely possible that our painting, whose form and composition are fairly typical of a door top, was part of a larger ensemble featuring other mythological scenes, which has not been identified at this stage.[2]

 

3. A spectacular rediscovery

 

A picture taken under ultra-violet light shows the extent of the overpainting that had been added to transform it into an easel painting, to accredit the idea that it had been painted by Claude Lorrain! These additions appear very clearly on both sides of the flute player and in the black-colored areas, while the original parts disappear under a blue fluorescence due to the presence of the old varnish. No element of the original composition hidden beneath the overpainting was visible on infrared reflectography, all the additions having been made with acrylic paint applied directly over the particularly opaque varnish.

 

Removal of the overpaint has gradually revealed the original composition, as we can see in the photo below, which reveals the appearance of our heifer's horn and ear.

The meticulous cleaning has restored the composition in its entirety, just as it had been conceived by Pierre, with a great freedom of touch and a vigor characteristic of his art on his return from Italy in the 1740's. The restoration has also revealed the painting's beautiful golden light.

 

We have kept and restored the carved and gilded wooden frame of this painting, which was probably executed using moldings from wood paneling.

 

Nicolas Lesur - Olivier Aaron - Jean-Baptiste Marie Pierre 1714-1789 Premier peintre du roi - Arthena 2009