Laurent de La Hyre (; 27 February 1606 – 28 December 1656) was a French
Baroque painter, born in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
. He was a leading exponent of the neoclassical style of
Parisian Atticism.
Life
La Hyre was greatly influenced by the work of Italian artists who came to Paris. He became a pupil of
Georges Lallemand Georges Lallemand (before 1575–1636) was a French artist. His name is sometimes given as "Lallemant".
Life
Lallemand was born in Nancy in around 1575. Nothing is known of his artistic education, but he is often assumed to have been a pupil of ...
and studied the works of
Primaticcio
Francesco Primaticcio (April 30, 1504 – 1570) was an Italian Mannerist painter, architect and sculptor who spent most of his career in France.
Biography
Born in Bologna, he trained under Giulio Romano in Mantua and became a pupil of ...
at
Fontainebleau, but never visited
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. La Hyre's captivating use of color and delicately posed figures are a trademark of his early, painteresque style. He was an innovative artist who used his superior skills as a storyteller to portray rarely depicted subjects. La Hyre is associated with the transitional period before the introduction of the French
Baroque by
Simon Vouet
Simon Vouet (; 9 January 1590 – 30 June 1649) was a French painter who studied and rose to prominence in Italy before being summoned by Louis XIII to serve as Premier peintre du Roi in France. He and his studio of artists created religious and ...
.
[''Encyclopædia Britannica'', 1911]
His picture of
Pope Nicholas V
Pope Nicholas V ( la, Nicholaus V; it, Niccolò V; 13 November 1397 – 24 March 1455), born Tommaso Parentucelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 March 1447 until his death in March 1455. Pope Eugene made ...
opening the
crypt in which he discovers the corpse of
St. Francis of Assisi
Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...
standing (located at the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
) was executed in 1630 for the
Capuchin friars of the
Marais
Marais (, meaning "marsh") may refer to:
People
* Marais (given name)
* Marais (surname)
Other uses
* Le Marais, historic district of Paris
* Théâtre du Marais, the name of several theatres and theatrical troupes in Paris, France
* Marais (c ...
; its gravity and sobriety seems to have been influential for the next generation of French painters, particularly
Eustache Le Sueur. The Louvre contains eight other works, and paintings by La Hyre are in the museums of
Strasburg,
Rouen and
Le Mans.
[
His drawings, of which the ]British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
possesses a fine example, ''Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple'', are treated as seriously as his paintings, and sometimes show simplicity and dignity of effect. The example of the Capuchins, for whom he executed several other works in Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, Rouen and Fécamp, was followed by the goldsmith's company, for whom he produced in 1635 ''St. Peter healing the Sick'' (Louvre) and the ''Conversion of St Paul
The conversion of Paul the Apostle (also the Pauline conversion, Damascene conversion, Damascus Christophany and the "road to Damascus" event) was, according to the New Testament, an event in the life of Saul/Paul the Apostle that led him to cea ...
'' in 1637.
In 1648, La Hyre was one of the founders of the French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture and was elected as one of the original twelve elders in charge of its running.''Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire de l'Académie royale de Peinture et de Sculpture depuis 1648 jusqu'en 1664''
Ed. Anatole de Montaiglon, Paris 1853, vol. I, p. 36.
Richelieu called La Hyre to the Palais Royal;
Pierre Séguier
Pierre Séguier (; 28 May 1588 – 28 January 1672) was a French statesman, chancellor of France from 1635.
Biography Early years
Séguier was born in Paris to a prominent legal family originating in Quercy. His grandfather, Pierre Séguier (150 ...
,
Gédéon Tallemant des Réaux
Gédéon Tallemant, Sieur des Réaux (7 November 1619 – 6 November 1692) was a French writer known for his ''Historiettes'', a collection of short biographies.
Biography
Born at La Rochelle, he belonged to a wealthy middle-class Huguenot fa ...
and many others entrusted him with important works of decoration; for the Gobelins he designed a series of large compositions. La Hyre painted also a great number of portraits, and in 1654 united in one work for the town-hall of Paris those of the principal dignitaries of the municipality.
[ His students included François Chauveau.
]
Works by Laurent de La Hyre
File:Laurent de La Hyre - Theseus and Aethra - WGA12325.jpg, ''Theseus and Aethra''
Laurent de La Hyre - The Rape of Europa - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Rape of Europa''
File:La Hyre - Regency of Anne of Austria.jpg, ''Regency of Anne of Austria''
File:Laurent de La Hyre - Cyrus Announcing to Araspas that Panthea Has Obtained His Pardon - WGA12316.jpg, ''Cyrus Announcing to Araspas that Panthea Has Obtained His Pardon''
File:Laurent de la La Hyre 001.jpg, '' Cornelia Refuses The Crown of The Ptolomai'' (1646)
File:La Hyre Hercule et Omphale.jpg, ''Hercules and Omphale'' (1626)
File:Allegory of Astronomy - Laurent de La Hyre.jpg, ''Allegory of Astronomy'' (1649)
File:La-hyre-geometry.jpg, ''Allegory of Geometry'' (1649)
File:Laurent de La Hyre Allegory of Music 1649.png, ''Allegory of Music'' (1649)
File:Laurent de La Hyre - Allegory of Arithmetic - Walters 371917.jpg, ''Allegory of Arithmetic'' (1650)
File:Allegory of Dialectic.jpg, Allegory of Dialectic (1650)
File:Laurent de La Hyre - Allegory of Grammar - Walters 37862.jpg, ''Allegory of Grammar'' (1650)
File:Allegory of Rhetoric.jpg, ''Allegory of Rhetoric'' (1650)
File:Apparition du Christ aux pélerins d’Emmaüs by Laurent de La Hyre.jpg, ''Christ in Emmaus''
File:Abraham.jpg, ''Abraham Sacrificing Isaac''
File:Laurent de La Hyre - Laban Searching Jacob's Baggage for the Stolen Idols - WGA12321.jpg , ''Laban Searching Jacob's Baggage for the Stolen Idols ''
File:Laurent de La Hyre - Jesus Appearing to the Three Marys - WGA12319.jpg , ''Jesus Appearing to the Three Marys''
References
Sources
*
External links
*
''Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi''
a fully digitized exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries, which contains material on Laurent de La Hyre (see index)
''A Caravaggio Rediscovered, The Lute Player''
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on La Hyre (see cat. no. 19)
{{DEFAULTSORT:La Hyre, Laurent de
1606 births
1656 deaths
French Baroque painters
Painters from Paris
French tapestry artists