Louis Laguerre (1663 – 20 April 1721) was a French decorative painter mainly working in England. Born in

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

in 1663 and trained at the Paris

Academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...

under

Charles Le Brun Charles Le Brun (baptised 24 February 1619 – 12 February 1690) was a French painter, physiognomist, art theorist, and a director of several art schools of his time. As court painter to Louis XIV, who declared him "the greatest French artist of ...

, he came to England in 1683, where he first worked with

Antonio Verrio Antonio Verrio (c. 1636 – 15 June 1707) was an Italian painter. He was responsible for introducing Baroque mural painting into England and served the Crown over a thirty-year period.British Art Journal, Volume X No. 3, Winter/Spring 2009/10 ...

, and then on his own. He rivalled with Sir

James Thornhill Sir James Thornhill (25 July 1675 or 1676 – 4 May 1734) was an English painter of historical subjects working in the Italian baroque tradition. He was responsible for some large-scale schemes of murals, including the "Painted Hall" at the ...

in the field of

history painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and Bible ...

, primarily decorating the great houses of the nobility. His wall paintings can be found in

Blenheim Palace Blenheim Palace (pronounced ) is a country house in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough and the only non-royal, non- episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, on ...

Marlborough House Marlborough House, a Grade I listed mansion in St James's, City of Westminster, London, is the headquarters of the Commonwealth of Nations and the seat of the Commonwealth Secretariat. It was built in 1711 for Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marl ...

Petworth House Petworth House in the parish of Petworth, West Sussex, England, is a late 17th-century Grade I listed country house, rebuilt in 1688 by Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, and altered in the 1870s to the design of the architect Anthony Sa ...

Burghley House Burghley House () is a grand sixteenth-century English country house near Stamford, Lincolnshire. It is a leading example of the Elizabethan prodigy house, built and still lived in by the Cecil family. The exterior largely retains its Elizabet ...

Fetcham Park House Fetcham Park House is a Queen Anne mansion designed by the English architect William Talman with internal murals by the renowned artist Louis Laguerre and grounds originally landscaped by George London. It is located in the parish of Fetcham ...

and

Chatsworth House Chatsworth House is a stately home in the Derbyshire Dales, north-east of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, England. The seat of the Duke of Devonshire, it has belonged to the House of Cavendish, Cavendish family sin ...

. In the 1980s, a restoration project revealed work by Laguerre at

Frogmore House Frogmore House is a 17th-century English country house owned by the Crown Estate. It is a historic Grade I listed building. The house is located on the Frogmore estate, which is situated within the grounds of the Home Park in Windsor, Berkshire ...

also. His subject matter included English victories over the armies of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

; at

Hampton Court Palace Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chie ...

he carried out work for

William III of England William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 16508 March 1702), also widely known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrec ...

, for whom he depicted the

Labours of Hercules The Labours of Hercules or Labours of Heracles ( grc-gre, οἱ Ἡρακλέους ἆθλοι, ) are a series of episodes concerning a penance carried out by Heracles, the greatest of the Greek heroes, whose name was later romanised as ...

. Laguerre painted religious subjects at St Lawrence's Church,

Whitchurch, London Little Stanmore was an ancient parish of Middlesex which is today the residential area of Canons Park in the London Borough of Harrow, England. Toponymy The name 'Stanmore' means "pond made of stone". Little Stanmore was named to distinguish i ...

. In 1731

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...

wrote,

On painted ceilings you devoutly stare
Where sprawl the saints of Verrio or Laguerre...Epistle IV
(''Epistles to Several Persons: Epistle IV To Richard Boyle, Earl of Burlington'')

which was taken by some contemporaries to be a reference to Laguerre's work for

James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos, (6 January 16739 August 1744) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1698 until 1714, when he succeeded to the peerage as Baron Chandos, and vacated ...

at this church and the nearby Cannons House. Laguerre was also a director of

Godfrey Kneller Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1st Baronet (born Gottfried Kniller; 8 August 1646 – 19 October 1723), was the leading portrait painter in England during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and was court painter to Kingdom of England, English and Br ...

's London Academy of Drawing and Painting, founded in the autumn of 1711. He died in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 20 April 1721. His father-in-law was

Jean Tijou Jean Tijou () was a French Huguenot ironworker. He is known solely through his work in England, where he worked on several of the key English Baroque buildings. Very little is known of his biography. He arrived in England in c. 1689 and enjoyed ...

Gallery of Laugerre's Work

File:Julius Caesar sacrificing before going to the Senate, by Louis Laguerre, 1692-1694, oil on plaster - Entrance Hall, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, England - DSC03002.jpg, Julius Caesar sacrificing before going to the Senate, 1692-1694, oil on plaster - Painted Hall, Chatsworth House File:Christ rising into Heaven, by Louis Laguerre, c. 1688-1693 - Chapel, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, England - DSC03079.jpg, Christ rising into Heaven, c.1688-1693 - Chapel, Chatsworth House File:Christ healing the sick, by Louis Laguerre, c. 1688-1693 - Chapel, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, DSC03084.jpg, File:Christ healing the Sick, c.1688-1693 - Chapel, Chatsworth House File:An Assembly of the Gods, by Louis Laguerre, c. 1688-1693 - State Drawing Room, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, England - DSC03183.jpg, An Assembly of the Gods, c.1688-1693 - State Drawing Room, Chatsworth House File:Phaeton and Apollo, by Louis Laguerre, c. 1688-1693 - State Music Room, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, England - DSC03202.jpg, Phaeton and Apollo, c.1688-1693 - State Music Room, Chatsworth House File:Triumph of Diana, by Louis Laguerre, c. 1688-1693 - State Bedchamber, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, England - DSC03221.jpg, Triumph of Diana, c.1688-1693 - State Bedchamber, Chatsworth House File:Judgment of Paris (Dispatch of the Apple of Discord), by Louis Laguerre, c. 1688-1693 - State Closet, Chatsworth House - Derbyshire, England - DSC03233.jpg, Judgment of Paris (Dispatch of the Apple of Discord), c.1688-1693 - State Closet, Chatsworth House File:Petworth House - Interior.JPG, Prometheus and Pandora, 1718–20, The Grand Staircase, Petworth House File:Blenheim Palace, interior 06.jpg, Murals with fictive architecture and portraits, c.1720, Saloon, Blenheim Palace File:Blenheim Ceiling 2017.jpg, The Triumph of the Duke of Marlborough, c.1720, Saloon ceiling Blenheim Palace

Gallery of Laugerre's Work

See also

References

Further reading