GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Anne–Louis Girodet pitilessly but sensitively describes the florid complexion, fleshy lips, and deeply hooded eyes of his sitter, Louis–Charles Balzac. Balzac was an architect who had traveled to Egypt in 1798 alongside Napoleon Bonaparte's invading army. He went as a member of the official expedition tasked with documenting Egypt's monuments, an encyclopedic publication titled Description of Egypt.
Balzac and Girodet probably met in 1809 or 1810, when the artist was preparing his monumental painting The Revolt of Cairo, which showed a bloody October 1798 revolt against the Napoleonic occupation, an event to which Balzac was one of the few surviving eyewitnesses. This portrait dates to the year after Girodet completed the history painting and may have been made as a gesture of friendship to Balzac.
Excerpt from
Heather MacDonald, DMA label copy, 2010.
NOTES
Created in 1811
Checked Piction
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Girodet, Anne-Louis (French, 1767-1824)
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Paris (France): TGN: 7008038
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
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PROVENANCE
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WEB RESOURCES
- National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC~Read a biography of the artist from the NGA.
- Linda Hall Library~Learn more about Louis-Charles Balzac from the Linda Hall Library at the University of Missouri-Kansa City.
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Apply to objects where number equals 1989.135.FA
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General Description
Anne–Louis Girodet pitilessly but sensitively describes the florid complexion, fleshy lips, and deeply hooded eyes of his sitter, Louis–Charles Balzac. Balzac was an architect who had traveled to Egypt in 1798 alongside Napoleon Bonaparte's invading army. He went as a member of the official expedition tasked with documenting Egypt's monuments, an encyclopedic publication titled Description of Egypt.
Balzac and Girodet probably met in 1809 or 1810, when the artist was preparing his monumental painting The Revolt of Cairo, which showed a bloody October 1798 revolt against the Napoleonic occupation, an event to which Balzac was one of the few surviving eyewitnesses. This portrait dates to the year after Girodet completed the history painting and may have been made as a gesture of friendship to Balzac.
Excerpt from
Heather MacDonald, DMA label copy, 2010.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC~Read a biography of the artist from the NGA.
- Linda Hall Library~Learn more about Louis-Charles Balzac from the Linda Hall Library at the University of Missouri-Kansa City.
Notes
Created in 1811
Checked Piction
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Girodet, Anne-Louis (French, 1767-1824)
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Paris (France): TGN: 7008038
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
1989.135.FA
source file
object_notes_2_d-0308.xml.nores