Joseph-Marie Vien (sometimes anglicised as Joseph-Mary Wien; 18 June 1716 – 27 March 1809) was a French painter. He was the last holder of the post of Premier peintre du Roi, serving from 1789 to 1791.

Biography

He was born in

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

. Protected by

Comte de Caylus Anne Claude de Tubières-Grimoard de Pestels de Lévis, ''comte de Caylus'', marquis d'Esternay, baron de Bransac (Anne Claude Philippe; 31 October, 16925 September 1765), was a French antiquarian, proto-archaeologist and man of letters. Born in ...

, he entered at an early age the studio of

Natoire Charles-Joseph Natoire (3 March 1700 – 23 August 1777) was a French painter in the Rococo manner, a pupil of François Lemoyne and director of the French Academy in Rome, 1751–1775. Considered during his lifetime the equal of François Bo ...

, and obtained the ''grand prix'' in 1745. He used his time at Rome in applying to the study of nature and the development of his own powers all that he gleaned from the masterpieces around him; but his tendencies were so foreign to the reigning taste that on his return to Paris he owed his admission to the academy for his picture ''Daedalus and Icarus'' ( Louvre) solely to the indignant protests of

François Boucher François Boucher ( , ; ; 29 September 1703 – 30 May 1770) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher, who worked in the Rococo style. Boucher is known for his idyllic and voluptuous paintings on classical themes, decorative allegories ...

.''Encyclopædia Britannica '', 1911 When in 1776, at the height of his established reputation, he became director of the school of France at Rome, he refused to take

Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David (; 30 August 1748 – 29 December 1825) was a French painter in the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. In the 1780s, his cerebral brand of history painting marked a change in ...

with him amongst his pupils, stating he was too old to teach a young artist. After his return, five years later, his fortunes were wrecked by the French Revolution; but he undauntedly set to work, and at the age of eighty (1796) carried off the prize in an open government competition.

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

acknowledged his merit by making him a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. Joseph-Marie Vien died in Paris, and was buried in the crypt of the Panthéon. He left behind him many other brilliant pupils, amongst whom were

François-André Vincent François-André Vincent (; 30 December 1746 – 4 August 1816) was a French neoclassical painter. Biography Vincent was born in Paris in 1746, the son of the miniaturist François-Elie Vincent. He studied under Joseph-Marie Vien and was ...

Jean-Antoine-Théodore Giroust Jean-Antoine-Théodore Giroust (; 1753–1817) was a French neoclassical painter. In 1770, at age seventeen, Giroust started studying painting in the studio of Joseph-Marie Vien, a pioneer of Neoclassicism. Among other students was Jacques-Lou ...

Jean-Baptiste Regnault Jean-Baptiste Regnault (9 October 1754 – 12 November 1829) was a French painter. Biography Regnault was born in Paris, and began life at sea in a merchant vessel. At the age of fifteen his talent attracted attention, and he was sent to I ...

Joseph-Benoît Suvée Joseph-Benoît Suvée (3 January 1743 – 9 February 1807) was a Flemish painter strongly influenced by French neo-classicism. Biography Suvée was born in Bruges. Initially a pupil of Matthias de Visch, he came to France aged 19 and bec ...

Jean-Pierre Saint-Ours Jean-Pierre Saint-Ours (4 April 1752 – 6 April 1809) was a Swiss painter from Geneva. As well as relatively informal portraits, he specialized in ambitious history paintings of subjects from ancient, especially classical, history. Thes ...

, François-Guillaume Ménageot,

Jean-Joseph Taillasson Jean-Joseph Taillasson (; 6 July 1745 – 11 November 1809) was a French history painter and portraitist, draftsman, and art critic. Biography Taillasson was born at Blaye, near Bordeaux. His poem "Le Danger des règles dans les Arts" was noted ...

and others of high merit; nor should the name of his wife,

Marie-Thérèse Reboul Marie-Thérèse Reboul (26 February 1735—4 January 1806), commonly called Madame Vien, was a French painter and engraver of natural history subjects, still lifes, and flowers. In 1757, Marie-Thérèse Reboul married the painter Joseph-Marie V ...

(1728–1805), herself a member of the academy, be omitted from this list. Their son, Marie Joseph, born in 1761, also distinguished himself as a painter.

Works

* ''Sainte Marthe recevant le Christ à Bethanie'' (1747), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''Saint Jérôme méditant sur un crâne'', La Fère, Musée Jeanne d'Aboville * ''La résurrection de Lazare'' (1747), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''L'embarquement de sainte Marthe'' (1751), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''L'arrivée de sainte Marthe en Provence'' (1748), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''La prédication de sainte Marthe'' (1748), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''L'agonie de sainte Marthe'' (1748), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''Les funérailles de sainte Marthe'' (1748), Église Sainte-Marthe, Tarascon * ''Hermite endormi'' (1753), Musée du Louvre * ''Dédale dans le Labyrinthe attachant les ailes à Icare'' (1754), Musée du Louvre * ''St Theresa of Avila'' (1754-55), New Orleans Museum of Art * ''La Douce Mélancolie'' (1756), Cleveland Museum of Art * ''L'Enlèvement de Proserpine'' (1762), Museum of Grenoble * ''La Marchande d'amours'' (1763), Palace of Fontainebleau * ''Une Femme qui sort des bains'', 1763, (huile 95x68 cm) (private collection) * ''Saint Denis préchant'' (1767),

Church of Saint-Roch The Church of Saint-Roch (french: Église Saint-Roch) is a 17th-18th-century French Baroque and classical style church in Paris, dedicated to Saint Roch. It is located at 284 rue Saint-Honoré, in the 1st arrondissement. The current church was ...

, Paris * ''Grecque au bain'' (1767), Museo de Arte de Ponce, Puerto Rico * ''Jeunes grecques parant de fleurs l'Amour endormi'' (1773), Musée du Louvre * ''Venus, Wounded by Diomedes, is Saved by Iris'' (1775), Columbus Museum of Art * ''Les adieux d'Hector et d'Andromaque'' (1786), Musée du Louvre * ''Love Fleeing Slavery'' (1789), Princeton University Art Museum * ''Saint Louis remet la régence à sa mère'', Saint-Louis Chapel, École Militaire, Paris * ''Toilette d'une jeune mariée dans le costume antique'', (100x135 cm) (private collection)Auctioned €401,487 in June 1992 by Sotheby's Monaco.

Notes

References

External links

Example of work: Cupid & Psyche, 1767
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vien, Joseph-Marie 1716 births 1809 deaths Artists from Montpellier 18th-century French painters French male painters 19th-century French painters Burials at the Panthéon, Paris Members of the Sénat conservateur Neoclassical painters Premiers peintres du Roi 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists