Alexandre-François Desportes (24 February 1661 — 20 April 1743) was a French painter and decorative designer who specialised in animals.
Autoportrait en chasseur (Self-portrait as hunter)Nature morte au gibier et a la coupe de porcelaine by François Desportes, an example of Chinese porcelain in European painting, circa 1700–1710
Desportes was born in Champigneulle, Ardennes. He studied in Paris, in the studio of the Flemish painter Nicasius Bernaerts, a pupil of Frans Snyders. During a brief sojourn in Poland, 1695–96, he painted portraits of John III Sobieski and Polish aristocrats; after the king's death Desportes returned to Paris, convinced that he should specialise in animals and flowers. He was received by the Académie de peinture et de sculpture in 1699, with the Self-Portrait in Hunting Dress now in the Musée du Louvre. In 1712–13 he spent six months in England. He received many commissions for decorative panels for the royal châteaux: Versailles, Marly, Meudon, Compiègne and, his last royal commission, for Louis XV at Choisy, 1742. He also did decorative paintings for the duc de Bourbon at Chantilly. Both Louis XIV and Louis XV commissioned portraits of their favorite hunting dogs.
Desportes would follow the royal hunt[1] with a small notebook he carried to make on-site sketches for still lives of the game that resulted from the day's hunt, for the king to make a choice of which were to be worked up into finished paintings. In several paintings he combined game with a buffet of spectacular pieces of silver as they might be displayed in a dining room; these are precious documents of the lost silver of the reign of Louis XIV.
His details of trophies of game or animals were used in cartoons for tapestry in which work of several painters was combined, woven at the Savonnerie and at the Gobelins (Portière de Diane, Louvre). For the Gobelins he designed the series of tapestries called Les Nouvelles Indes (8 of them, woven in the Manufacture Les Gobelins in Paris, have been saved in Archbishop's palace in Prague).
At his death, in Paris, he left a considerable amount of work in his studio (where his nephew Nicolas had trained), which included studies of animals and plants as well as some fox-hunting sketches by Jan Fyt. In 1784, the comte d'Angiviller, general director of the Bâtiments du Roi acquired these resources for painter's models at the manufactory of Sèvres porcelain, so that Desportes' influence in the iconography of French arts extended almost throughout the century.
^Saint-Simon recorded "il allait même d'ordinaire à la chasse à ses côtés, avec un petit portefeuille pour dessiner sur les lieux leurs diverses attitudes, entre lesquelles le roi choisissait, et toujours avec goût, celles qu'il préférait aux autres."
Referencesedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alexandre-François Desportes.
Alexandre-François Desportes on-line
Getty Museum: Tapestry screens after cartoons by Desportes
Still Life with Silver Metropolitan Museum
October 28, 2023
alexandre, françois, desportes, february, 1661, april, 1743, french, painter, decorative, designer, specialised, animals, autoportrait, chasseur, self, portrait, hunter, nature, morte, gibier, coupe, porcelaine, françois, desportes, example, chinese, porcelain. Alexandre Francois Desportes 24 February 1661 20 April 1743 was a French painter and decorative designer who specialised in animals Autoportrait en chasseur Self portrait as hunter Nature morte au gibier et a la coupe de porcelaine by Francois Desportes an example of Chinese porcelain in European painting circa 1700 1710Desportes was born in Champigneulle Ardennes He studied in Paris in the studio of the Flemish painter Nicasius Bernaerts a pupil of Frans Snyders During a brief sojourn in Poland 1695 96 he painted portraits of John III Sobieski and Polish aristocrats after the king s death Desportes returned to Paris convinced that he should specialise in animals and flowers He was received by the Academie de peinture et de sculpture in 1699 with the Self Portrait in Hunting Dress now in the Musee du Louvre In 1712 13 he spent six months in England He received many commissions for decorative panels for the royal chateaux Versailles Marly Meudon Compiegne and his last royal commission for Louis XV at Choisy 1742 He also did decorative paintings for the duc de Bourbon at Chantilly Both Louis XIV and Louis XV commissioned portraits of their favorite hunting dogs Desportes would follow the royal hunt 1 with a small notebook he carried to make on site sketches for still lives of the game that resulted from the day s hunt for the king to make a choice of which were to be worked up into finished paintings In several paintings he combined game with a buffet of spectacular pieces of silver as they might be displayed in a dining room these are precious documents of the lost silver of the reign of Louis XIV His details of trophies of game or animals were used in cartoons for tapestry in which work of several painters was combined woven at the Savonnerie and at the Gobelins Portiere de Diane Louvre For the Gobelins he designed the series of tapestries called Les Nouvelles Indes 8 of them woven in the Manufacture Les Gobelins in Paris have been saved in Archbishop s palace in Prague At his death in Paris he left a considerable amount of work in his studio where his nephew Nicolas had trained which included studies of animals and plants as well as some fox hunting sketches by Jan Fyt In 1784 the comte d Angiviller general director of the Batiments du Roi acquired these resources for painter s models at the manufactory of Sevres porcelain so that Desportes influence in the iconography of French arts extended almost throughout the century See also editAnimalier Still Life with a PeacockNotes edit Saint Simon recorded il allait meme d ordinaire a la chasse a ses cotes avec un petit portefeuille pour dessiner sur les lieux leurs diverses attitudes entre lesquelles le roi choisissait et toujours avec gout celles qu il preferait aux autres References edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alexandre Francois Desportes Alexandre Francois Desportes on line Wallace Collection Alexandre Francois Desportes Getty Museum Tapestry screens after cartoons by Desportes Still Life with Silver Metropolitan Museum Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Alexandre Francois Desportes amp oldid 1167868581, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
