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Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical
French Baroque French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...
style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for a small group of Italian and French collectors. He returned to Paris for a brief period to serve as First Painter to the King under
Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crow ...
and
Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...
, but soon returned to Rome and resumed his more traditional themes. In his later years he gave growing prominence to the landscape in his paintings. His work is characterized by clarity, logic, and order, and favors line over color. Until the 20th century he remained a major inspiration for such classically-oriented artists as
Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David (; 30 August 1748 – 29 December 1825) was a French painter in the Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. In the 1780s, his cerebral brand of history painting marked a change in taste away f ...
,
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres ( , ; 29 August 1780 – 14 January 1867) was a French Neoclassical painter. Ingres was profoundly influenced by past artistic traditions and aspired to become the guardian of academic orthodoxy against the ...
and
Paul Cézanne Paul Cézanne ( , , ; ; 19 January 1839 – 22 October 1906) was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th-century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically d ...
. Details of Poussin's artistic training are somewhat obscure. Around 1612 he traveled to Paris, where he studied under minor masters and completed his earliest surviving works. His enthusiasm for the Italian works he saw in the royal collections in Paris motivated him to travel to Rome in 1624, where he studied the works of Renaissance and Baroque painters—especially
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual ...
, who had a powerful influence on his style. He befriended a number of artists who shared his classicizing tendencies, and met important patrons, such as Cardinal Francesco Barberini and the antiquarian
Cassiano dal Pozzo Cassiano dal Pozzo (1588 – 22 October 1657) was an Italian scholar and patron of arts. The secretary of Cardinal Francesco Barberini, he was an antiquary in the classicizing circle of Rome, and a long-term friend and patron of Nicolas Poussin, w ...
. The commissions Poussin received for modestly scaled paintings of religious, mythological, and historical subjects allowed him to develop his individual style in works such as '' The Death of Germanicus'', ''The Massacre of the Innocents'', and the first of his two series of the ''
Seven Sacraments There are seven sacraments of the Catholic Church, which according to Catholic theology were instituted by Jesus and entrusted to the Church. Sacraments are visible rites seen as signs and efficacious channels of the grace of God to all those ...
''. He was persuaded to return to France in 1640 to be First Painter to the King but, dissatisfied with the overwhelming workload and the court intrigues, returned permanently to Rome after a little more than a year. Among the important works from his later years are ''Orion Blinded Searching for the Sun'', ''Landscape with Hercules and Cacus'', and ''The Seasons''.


Biography


Early years – Les Andelys and Paris

Nicolas Poussin's early biographer was his friend
Giovanni Pietro Bellori Giovanni Pietro Bellori (15 January 1613 – 19 February 1696), also known as Giovan Pietro Bellori or Gian Pietro Bellori, was an Italian painter and antiquarian, but, more famously, a prominent biographer of artists of the 17th century, equiva ...
, who relates that Poussin was born near
Les Andelys Les Andelys (; Norman: ''Les Aundelys'') is a commune in the northern French department of Eure, in Normandy. Geography It lies on the Seine, about northeast of Évreux. The commune is divided into two parts, Grand-Andely (located about fr ...
in
Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
and that he received an education that included some Latin, which would stand him in good stead. Another early friend and biographer,
André Félibien André Félibien (May 161911 June 1695), ''sieur des Avaux et de Javercy'', was a French chronicler of the arts and official court historian to Louis XIV of France. Biography Félibien was born at Chartres. At the age of fourteen he went to Pari ...
, reported that "He was busy without cease filling his sketchbooks with an infinite number of different figures which only his imagination could produce." His early sketches attracted the notice of
Quentin Varin Quentin Varin (1584 in Beauvais – 1626 in Paris), was a French Baroque painter. Biography According to the RKD he was the teacher of Nicolas Poussin. He arrived in Paris during the regency of
Marie de Medici Marie de' Medici (french: link=no, Marie de Médicis, it, link=no, Maria de' Medici; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV of France of the House of Bourbon, and Regent of the Kingdom ...
, when art was flourishing as a result of the royal commissions given by Marie de Medici for the decoration of her palace, and by the rise of wealthy Paris merchants who bought art. There was also a substantial market for paintings in the redecoration of churches outside Paris destroyed during the
French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estimates, between two and four mil ...
, which had recently ended, and for the numerous convents in Paris and other cities. However, Poussin was not a member of the powerful guild of master painters and sculptors, which had a monopoly on most art commissions and brought lawsuits against outsiders like Poussin who tried to break into the profession. His early sketches gained him a place in the studios of established painters. He worked for three months in the studio of the
Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
painter
Ferdinand Elle Ferdinand Elle (1570 in Mechelen – 1637 in Paris), was a French portrait painter. Biography According to the RKD he was the teacher of Nicolas Poussin and his son, the painter Louis Ferdinand Elle the Elder. He moved next to the studio 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 ...
, but Lallemand's inattention to precise drawing and the articulation of his figures apparently displeased Poussin. Moreover, Poussin did not fit well into the studio system, in which several painters worked on the same painting. Thereafter he preferred to work very slowly and alone. Little is known of his life in Paris at this time. Court records show that he ran up considerable debts, which he was unable to pay. He studied anatomy and perspective, but the most important event of his first residence in Paris was his discovery of the royal art collections, thanks to his friendship with Alexandre Courtois, the ''valet de chambre'' of Marie de Medicis. There he saw for the first time engravings of the works of
Giulio Romano Giulio Romano (, ; – 1 November 1546), is the acquired name of Giulio Pippi, who was an Italian painter and architect. He was a pupil of Raphael, and his stylistic deviations from High Renaissance classicism help define the sixteenth-cent ...
and especially of
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual ...
, whose work had an enormous influence on his future style. He first tried to travel to Rome in 1617 or 1618, but made it only as far as
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...
, where, as his biographer Bellori reported, "as a result of some sort of accident, he returned to France." On his return, he began making paintings for Paris churches and convents. In 1622 made another attempt to go to Rome, but went only as far as
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...
before returning. In the summer of the same year, he received his first important commission: the Order of
Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...
requested a series of six large paintings to honor the canonization of their founder, Saint
Francis Xavier Francis Xavier (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; Latin: ''Franciscus Xaverius''; Basque: ''Frantzisko Xabierkoa''; French: ''François Xavier''; Spanish: ''Francisco Javier''; Portuguese: ''Francisco Xavier''; 7 April 15063 December ...
. The originality and energy of these paintings (since lost) brought him a series of important commissions.
Giambattista Marino Giovanni Battista was a common Italian given name (see Battista for those with the surname) in the 16th-18th centuries. It refers to " John the Baptist" in English, the French equivalent is "Jean-Baptiste". Common nicknames include Giambattista, G ...
, the court poet to
Marie de Medici Marie de' Medici (french: link=no, Marie de Médicis, it, link=no, Maria de' Medici; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV of France of the House of Bourbon, and Regent of the Kingdom ...
, employed him to make a series of fifteen drawings, eleven illustrating Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' and four illustrating battle scenes from Roman history. The "Marino drawings", now at
Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original c ...
, are among the earliest identifiable works of Poussin. Marino's influence led to a commission for some decoration of Marie de Medici's residence, the
Luxembourg Palace The Luxembourg Palace (french: Palais du Luxembourg, ) is at 15 Rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally built (1615–1645) to the designs of the French architect Salomon de Brosse to be the royal residence of th ...
, then a commission from the first Archbishop of Paris, Jean-François de Gondi, for a painting of the death of the Virgin (since lost) for the Archbishop's family chapel at the Cathedral of
Notre-Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Middle Ages#Art and architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris ...
. Marino took him into his household, and, when he returned to Rome in 1623, invited Poussin to join him. Poussin remained in Paris to finish his earlier commissions, then arrived to Rome in the spring of 1624.


First residence in Rome (1624–1640)

File:Nicolas Poussin - La Mort de Germanicus.jpg, ''Death of Germanicus'', 1628,
Minneapolis Institute of Art The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the largest art museums in the United State ...
File:'Venus_and_Adonis',_oil_on_canvas_painting_by_Nicolas_Poussin,_c._1628-29,_Kimbell_Art_Museum.jpg, ''Venus and Adonis'', c. 1628–1629,
Kimbell Art Museum The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, hosts an art collection as well as traveling art exhibitions, educational programs and an extensive research library. Its initial artwork came from the private collection of Kay and Velma Kimbell, wh ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - L'Inspiration du poète (1629).jpg, '' The Inspiration of the Poet'', 1629–30,
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 ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Le Martyre de Saint Érasme.jpg, ''The Martyrdom of Saint Erasmus'' 1630,
Vatican Museum The Vatican Museums ( it, Musei Vaticani; la, Musea Vaticana) are the public museums of the Vatican City. They display works from the immense collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries, including several of ...
 Poussin was thirty when he arrived in Rome in 1624. The new Pope,
Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As p ...
, elected in 1623, was determined to maintain the position of Rome as the artistic capital of Europe, and artists from around the world gathered there. Poussin could visit the churches and convents to study the works of
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual ...
and other Renaissance painters, as well as the more recent works of Carracci,
Guido Reni Guido Reni (; 4 November 1575 – 18 August 1642) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne. He painted primarily religi ...
and
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of h ...
(whose work Poussin detested, saying that Caravaggio was born to destroy painting). He studied the art of painting nudes at the Academy of
Domenichino Domenico Zampieri (, ; October 21, 1581 – April 6, 1641), known by the diminutive Domenichino (, ) after his shortness, was an Italian Baroque painter of the Bolognese School of painters. Life Domenichino was born in Bologna, son of a shoem ...
, and frequented the Academy of Saint Luke, which brought together the leading painters in Rome, and whose head in 1624 was another French painter,
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 ...
, who offered lodging to Poussin. Poussin became acquainted with other artists in Rome and tended to befriend those with classicizing artistic leanings: the French sculptor
François Duquesnoy François Duquesnoy or Frans Duquesnoy (12 January 1597 – 18 July 1643) was a Flemish Baroque sculptor who was active in Rome for most of his career. His idealized representations are often contrasted with the more emotional character of Berni ...
whom he lodged with in 1626 in via dei Maroniti; the French artist
Jacques Stella Jacques Stella (1596 – 29 April 1657) was a French painter, a leading exponent of the neoclassical style of Parisian Atticism. Life Stella was born in Lyon. His father was François Stella, a painter and merchant of Flemish origin, but ...
;
Claude Lorraine Claude Lorrain (; born Claude Gellée , called ''le Lorrain'' in French; traditionally just Claude in English; c. 1600 – 23 November 1682) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher of the Baroque era. He spent most of his life in It ...
; Domenichino;
Andrea Sacchi Andrea Sacchi (30 November 159921 June 1661) was an Italian painter of High Baroque Classicism, active in Rome. A generation of artists who shared his style of art include the painters Nicolas Poussin and Giovanni Battista Passeri, the sculptors ...
; and joined an informal academy of artists and patrons opposed to the current
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...
style that formed around
Joachim von Sandrart Joachim von Sandrart (12 May 1606 – 14 October 1688) was a German Baroque art-historian and painter, active in Amsterdam during the Dutch Golden Age. He is most significant for his collection of biographies of Dutch and German artists the '' T ...
. Rome also offered Poussin a flourishing art market and an introduction to an important number of art patrons. Through Marino, he was introduced to Cardinal Francesco Barberini, the brother of the new Pope, and to
Cassiano dal Pozzo Cassiano dal Pozzo (1588 – 22 October 1657) was an Italian scholar and patron of arts. The secretary of Cardinal Francesco Barberini, he was an antiquary in the classicizing circle of Rome, and a long-term friend and patron of Nicolas Poussin, w ...
, the Cardinal's secretary and a passionate scholar of ancient Rome and Greece, who both later became his important patrons. The new art collectors demanded a different format of paintings; instead of large altarpieces and decoration for palaces, they wanted smaller-size religious paintings for private devotion or picturesque landscapes, mythological and history paintings. The early years of Poussin in Rome were difficult. His patron Marino departed Rome for Naples in May 1624, shortly after Poussin arrived, and died there in 1625. His other major sponsor, Cardinal Francesco Barberini, was named a papal legate to Spain and also departed soon afterwards, taking Cassiano dal Pozzo with him. Poussin became ill with
syphilis Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium '' Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents (primary, secondary, latent, a ...
, but refused to go to the hospital, where the care was extremely poor, and he was unable to paint for months. He survived by selling the paintings he had for a few ecus. Thanks to the assistance of a chef, Jacques Dughet, whose family took him in and cared for him, he largely recovered by 1629, and on September 1, 1630 he married Anne-Marie Dughet, the daughter of Dughet. His two brothers-in-law were artists, and
Gaspard Dughet Gaspard Dughet (15 June 1615 – 25 May 1675), also known as Gaspard Poussin, was a French painter born in Rome. Life Dughet was born in Rome, the son of a French pastry-cook and his Italian wife. He has always generally been considered as a Fr ...
later took Poussin's surname. Cardinal Barberini and Cassiano dal Pozzo returned to Rome in 1626, and by their patronage Poussin received two major commissions. In 1627, Poussin painted ''The Death of Germanicus'' (
Minneapolis Institute of Arts The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the largest art museums in the United State ...
) for Cardinal Barberini. The painting’s erudite use of ancient textual and visual sources (the ''Histories'' of Tacitus and the Meleager sarcophagus), stoic restraint and pictorial clarity established Poussin’s reputation as a major artist. In 1628, he was living on the via Paolino (Babuino) with Jean le Maire. The success of the Germanicus led to an even more prestigious commission in 1628 for an altarpiece depicting the ''Martyrdom of St. Erasmus'', for the Erasmus Chapel in the basilica of St. Peter’s (now in the Vatican Pinacoteca). The Fabricca di San Pietro had originally awarded the commission to
Pietro da Cortona Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...
, who had produced only preliminary designs for the altarpiece when he was unexpectedly transferred to another project. Thanks to Cassiano dal Pozzo’s influence, Poussin was chosen to paint the Saint Erasmus altarpiece, following Pietro da Cortona’s original design. With its plunging diagonal composition and high narrative drama, the ''Martyrdom of St. Erasmus'' is Poussin’s most overtly “baroque” work. Despite its adherence to the pictorial idiom of the day, for unknown reasons, the ''Martyrdom of St. Erasmus'' seems to have met with official displeasure and generated no further papal commissions. This disappointment, and the loss of a competition for a fresco cycle in San Luigi dei Francesi, convinced Poussin abandon the pursuit of large-scale, public commissions and the burdensome competitions, content restrictions, and political machinations they entailed. Instead, Poussin would re-orient his art towards private collectors, for whom he could work more slowly, with increasing control over subject matter and style. Along with Cardinal Barberini and Cassiano dal Pozzo, for whom he painted the first ''Seven'' ''Sacraments'' series'','' Poussin’s early private patrons included the Chanoine Gian Maria Roscioli, who bought ''The Young Pyrrhus Saved'' and several other important works; Cardinal Rospigliosi, for whom he painted the second version of ''The Shepherds of Arcadia''; and Cardinal Luigi Omodei, who received the ''Triumphs of Flora'' (c. 1630–32,
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 ...
). He painted the ''Massacre of the Innocents'' for the Banker
Vincenzo Giustiniani Marchese Vincenzo Giustiniani (13 September 1564 – 27 December 1637) was an aristocratic Italian banker, art collector and intellectual of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, known today largely for the Giustiniani art collection, assembled ...
; the jewel thief and art swindler, Fabrizio Valguarnera, bought '' Plague of Ashdod'' and commissioned ''The Empire of Flora''. He also received his first French commissions from the Marechal de Crequi, the French envoy to Italy, later, from
Cardinal de Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...
for a series of ''Bacchanales''. Buoyed by this commercial success, Poussin bought a life interest in a small house on Via Paolina (Babuino) for his wife and himself in 1632 and entered his most productive period. His house was at the foot of Trinité des Monts, near the city gate, where other foreigners and artists lived; its exact location is not known but it was opposite the church of Sant'Atanasio dei Greci.


Return to France (1641–42)

File:Poussin Miracle de saint François Xavier Louvre.jpg, ''The Miracle of Saint Francis Xavier'', 1641, Louvre File:Nicolas Poussin - Le Temps soustrait la Vérité aux atteintes de l'Envie et de la Discorde.jpg, ''Time defending Truth from the attacks of Envy and Discord'', for the study of Cardinal Richelieu, 1642, Louvre File:Frontispiece- Virgil, Publii Virgilii Maronis Opera MET DP822417.jpg, Frontispiece for the works of
Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...
for the royal printing house, 1641, Metropolitan Museum As the work of Poussin became well known in Rome, he received invitations to return to Paris for important royal commissions, proposed by Sublet de Noyers, the Superintendent of buildings for
Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crow ...
. When Poussin declined, Noyers sent his cousins, Roland Fréart de Chambray and Paul Fréart, to Rome to persuade Poussin to come home, offering him the title of First Painter to the King, plus a substantial residence at the Tuileries Palace. Poussin yielded, and in December 1640 he was back in Paris. The correspondence of Poussin to Cassiano dal Pozzo and his other friends in Rome show that he was appreciative of the money and honors, but he was quickly overwhelmed by a large number of commissions, particularly since he had taken the habit of working slowly and carefully. His new projects included ''The Institution of the Eucharist'' for the chapel of the
Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye The Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a former royal palace in the commune of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, in the ''département'' of Yvelines, about 19 km west of Paris, France. Today, it houses the '' musée d'Archéologie nationale'' (N ...
, and ''The Miracle of Saint Francis-Xavier'' for the altar of the church of the novitiate of the Jesuits. In addition, he was asked to the ceilings and vaults for the Grand gallery of 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 ...
, and to paint a large allegorical work for the study of Cardinal Richelieu, on the theme ''Time Defending Truth from the Attacks of Envy and Discord'', with the figure of "Truth" clearly standing for Cardinal Richelieu. He was also expected to provide designs for royal tapestries and the front pieces for books from the royal printing house. He was also subjected to considerable criticism from the partisans of other French painters, including his old friend Simon Vouet. He completed a painting of the ''Last Supper'' (now in the Louvre), eight cartoons for the Gobelins tapestry manufactory, drawings for a proposed series of
grisaille Grisaille ( or ; french: grisaille, lit=greyed , from ''gris'' 'grey') is a painting executed entirely in shades of grey or of another neutral greyish colour. It is particularly used in large decorative schemes in imitation of sculpture. Many g ...
paintings of the ''Labors of Hercules'' for the Louvre, and a painting of the ''Triumph of Truth'' for Cardinal Richelieu (now in the Louvre). He was increasingly unhappy with the court intrigues and the overwhelming number of commissions. In the autumn of 1642, when the King and court were out of Paris in
Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...
, he found a pretext to leave Paris and to return permanently to Rome.


Final years in Rome (1642–1665)

File:Landscape with orpheus and eurydice 1650-51.jpg, ''Landscape with Orpheus and Eurydice'', 1650–51 File:Poussin, Nicolas - Paysage avec Orion aveugle cherchant le soleil - 1658.jpg, '' Blind Orion Searching for the Rising Sun'', 1658,
The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - L'Été ou Ruth et Booz.jpg, '' The Four Seasons (Summer)'', 1660–1664, Louvre When he returned to Rome in 1642, he found the art world was in transition. Pope Urban VIII died in 1644, and the new Pope, Innocent X, was less interested in art patronage, and preferred Spanish over French culture. Poussin's great patrons, the Barberinis, departed Rome for France. He still had a few important patrons in Rome, including Cassiano dal Pozzo and the future Cardinal Camillo Massimi, but began to paint more frequently for the patrons he had found in Paris. Cardinal Richelieu died in 1632, and Louis XIII died in 1643, and Poussin's Paris sponsor, Sublet de Noyer, lost his position, but Richelieu's successor,
Cardinal Mazarin Cardinal Jules Mazarin (, also , , ; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino () or Mazarini, was an Italian cardinal, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Louis XIII and Louis X ...
, began to collect Poussin's works. In October 1643, Poussin sold the furnishings of his house in the
Tuileries The Tuileries Palace (french: Palais des Tuileries, ) was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the River Seine, directly in front of the Louvre. It was the usual Parisian residence of most French monarchs, from ...
in Paris, and settled for the rest of his life in Rome. In 1647,
André Félibien André Félibien (May 161911 June 1695), ''sieur des Avaux et de Javercy'', was a French chronicler of the arts and official court historian to Louis XIV of France. Biography Félibien was born at Chartres. At the age of fourteen he went to Pari ...
, the secretary of the French Embassy in Rome, became a friend and painting student of Poussin, and published the first book devoted entirely to his work. His growing number of French patrons included the Abbé Louis Fouquet, brother of
Nicolas Fouquet Nicolas Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Île, vicomte de Melun et Vaux (27 January 1615 – 23 March 1680) was the Superintendent of Finances in France from 1653 until 1661 under King Louis XIV. He had a glittering career, and acquired enormous wealth ...
, the celebrated superintendent of finances of the young Louis XIV. In 1655 Fouquet obtained for Poussin official recognition of his earlier title as First Painter of the King, along with payment for his past French commissions. To thank Fouquet, Poussin made designs for the baths Fouquet was constructing at his château at
Vaux-le-Vicomte The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte (English: Palace of Vaux-le-Vicomte) is a Baroque French château located in Maincy, near Melun, southeast of Paris in the Seine-et-Marne department of Île-de-France. Built between 1658 and 1661 for Nicolas ...
. Another important French patron of Poussin in this period was
Paul Fréart de Chantelou Paul Fréart de Chantelou (25 March 1609 – 1694) was a French collector and patron of the arts. He encouraged major artists of his era, in particular Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665) and Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680), and is known for his dia ...
, who came to Rome in 1643 and stayed there for several months. He commissioned from Poussin some of his most important works, including the second series of the ''
Seven Sacraments There are seven sacraments of the Catholic Church, which according to Catholic theology were instituted by Jesus and entrusted to the Church. Sacraments are visible rites seen as signs and efficacious channels of the grace of God to all those ...
'', painted between 1644 and 1648, and his ''Landscape with Diogenes''. In 1649 he painted the ''Vision of St Paul'' for the comic poet Paul Scarron, and in 1651 the ''Holy Family'' for the duc de Créquy. Landscapes had been a secondary feature of his early work; in his later work nature and the landscape was frequently the central element of the painting. He lived an austere and comfortable life, working slowly and apparently without assistants. The painter
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 ...
joined him in Rome for three years, and Poussin's work had a major influence on Le Brun's style. In 1647, his patrons Chantelou and Pointel requested portraits of Poussin. He responded by making two self-portraits, completed together in 1649. He suffered from declining health after 1650, and was troubled by a worsening tremor in his hand, evidence of which is apparent in his late drawings. Nonetheless, in his final eight years he painted some of the most ambitious and celebrated of his works, including ''The Birth of Bacchus'', ''Orion Blinded Searching for the Sun'', ''Landscape with Hercules and Cacus'', the four paintings of ''The Seasons'' and ''Apollo in love with Daphné''. His wife Anne-Marie died in 1664, and thereafter his own health sank rapidly. On 21 September he dictated his will, and he died in Rome on 19 November 1665 and was buried in the church of San Lorenzo in Lucina.


Subjects

Each of Poussin's paintings told a story. Though he had little formal education, Poussin became very knowledgeable in the nuances of religious history, mythology and classical literature, and, usually after consulting with his clients, took his subjects from these topics. Many of his paintings combined several different incidents, occurring at different times, into the same painting, in order to tell the story, and the ''affetti'', or facial expressions of the participants, showed their different reactions. Aside from his self-portraits, Poussin never painted contemporary subjects.


Religion

File:Nicolas Poussin - Le massacre des Innocents - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Massacre of the Innocents'', 1625–1629, Musée Condé, Chantilly File:Seven Sacraments - Ordination II (1647) Nicolas Poussin.jpg, ''The Seven Sacraments – Ordination'', 1647, Louvre File:Nicolas Poussin - The Judgment of Solomon - WGA18330.jpg, ''The Judgement of Solomon'', 1649, Louvre Religion was the most common subject of his paintings, as the church was the most important art patron in Rome and because there was a growing demand by wealthy patrons for devotional paintings at home. He took a large part of his themes from the
Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...
, which offered more variety and the stories were often more vague and gave him more freedom to invent. He painted different versions of the stories of Eliazer and
Rebecca Rebecca, ; Syriac: , ) from the Hebrew (lit., 'connection'), from Semitic root , 'to tie, couple or join', 'to secure', or 'to snare') () appears in the Hebrew Bible as the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob and Esau. According to biblical ...
from the
Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning" ...
and made three versions of ''Moses saved from the waters''. The
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...
provided the subject of one of his most dramatic paintings, "The Massacre of the Innocents", where the general slaughter was reduced to a single brutal incident. In his ''Judgement of Solomon'' (1649), the story can be read in the varied facial expressions of the participants. His religious paintings were sometimes criticized by his rivals for their variation from tradition. His painting of Christ in the sky in his painting of Saint Francis-Xavier was criticized by partisans of
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 ...
for having "Too much pride, and resembling the god Jupiter more than a God of Mercy". Poussin responded that "he could not and should not imagine a Christ, no matter what he is doing, looking like a gentle father, considering that, when he was on earth among men, it was difficult to look him in the face". The most famous of his religious works were the two series called '' The Seven Sacraments'', representing the meaning of the moral laws behind each of the principal ceremonies of the church, illustrated by incidents in the life of Christ. The first series was painted in Rome by his major early patron,
Cassiano dal Pozzo Cassiano dal Pozzo (1588 – 22 October 1657) was an Italian scholar and patron of arts. The secretary of Cardinal Francesco Barberini, he was an antiquary in the classicizing circle of Rome, and a long-term friend and patron of Nicolas Poussin, w ...
, and was finished in 1642. It was viewed by his later patron,
Paul Fréart de Chantelou Paul Fréart de Chantelou (25 March 1609 – 1694) was a French collector and patron of the arts. He encouraged major artists of his era, in particular Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665) and Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680), and is known for his dia ...
, who asked for a copy. Instead of making copies, Poussin painted an entirely new series of paintings, which was finished by 1647. The new series had less of the freshness and originality of the first series, but was striking for its simplicity and austerity in achieving its effects; the second series illustrated his mastery of the balance of the figures, the variety of expressions, and the juxtaposition of colors.


Mythology and classical literature

File:Nicolas Poussin - The Empire of Flora - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Empire of Flora'', 1631, ''Gemäldegalerie'' Dresden File:L'Enlèvement des Sabines – Nicolas Poussin – Musée du Louvre, INV 7290 – Q3110586.jpg, ''The Rape of the Sabine Women'', c. 1638,
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 ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Apollo and Daphne - WGA18345.jpg, ''Apollo and Daphne'', 1664, Louvre Classical Greek and Roman mythology, history and literature provided the subjects for many of his paintings, particularly during his early years in Rome. His first successful painting in Rome, ''The Death of Germanicus'', was based upon a story in the ''Annals'' of
Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his two major works—the ...
. In his early years he devoted a series of paintings, full of color, movement and sensuality, to the Bacchanals, colorful portrayals of ceremonies devoted to the god of wine
Bacchus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
, and celebrating the goddesses
Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
and Flore. He also created ''The Birth of Venus'' (1635), telling the story of the Roman goddess through an elaborate composition full of dynamic figures for the French patron,
Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...
, who had also commissioned the Bacchanals. Many of his mythological paintings featured gardens and floral themes; his first Roman patrons, the Barberini family, had one of largest and most famous gardens in Rome. Another of his early major themes was the
Rape of the Sabine Women The Rape of the Sabine Women ( ), also known as the Abduction of the Sabine Women or the Kidnapping of the Sabine Women, was an incident in Roman mythology in which the men of Rome committed a mass abduction of young women from the other cit ...
, recounting how the King of Rome,
Romulus Romulus () was the legendary founder and first king of Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus and his contemporaries. Although many of these ...
, wanting wives for his soldiers, invited the members of the neighboring Sabine tribe for a festival, and then, on his signal, kidnapped all of the women. He painted two versions, one in 1634, now in the Metropolitan Museum, and the other in 1637, now in the Louvre. He also painted two versions illustrating a story of Ovid in the ''Metamorphoses'' in which Venus mourning the death of
Adonis In Greek mythology, Adonis, ; derived from the Canaanite word ''ʼadōn'', meaning "lord". R. S. P. Beekes, ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009, p. 23. was the mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite. One day, Adonis was gored by ...
after a hunting accident, transforms his blood into the color of the
anemone ''Anemone'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. Plants of the genus are commonly called windflowers. They are native to the temperate and subtropical regions of all continents except Australia, New Zealand an ...
flower. Throughout his career, Poussin frequently achieved what the art historian
Willibald Sauerländer Willibald Sauerländer (29 February 1924 in Bad Waldsee, Württemberg, Germany – 18 April 2018 in Munich, Germany) was a German art historian specializing in Medieval French sculpture. From 1970 to 1989, he was director of the prestigious Ze ...
terms a "consonance ... between the pagan and the Christian world". An example is ''The Four Seasons'' (1660–64), in which Christian and pagan themes are mingled: ''Spring'', traditionally personified by the Roman goddess
Flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. ...
, instead features Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden; ''Summer'' is symbolized not by Ceres but by the biblical
Ruth Ruth (or its variants) may refer to: Places France * Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France Switzerland * Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny United States * Ruth, Alabama * Ruth, Ar ...
. In his later years, his mythological paintings became more somber, and often introduced the symbols of mortality and death. The last painting he was working on before his death was ''Apollo in love with Daphne'', which he presented to his patron, the future Cardinal Massimi, in 1665. The figures on the left of the canvas, around Apollo, largely represented vitality and life, while those on the right, around Daphne, were symbols of sterility and death. He was unable to complete the painting because of the trembling of his hand, and the figures on the right are unfinished.


Poetry and allegory

File:Nicolas Poussin 075.jpg, ''Renaud et Armide'', 1635,
Pushkin Museum The Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts (russian: Музей изобразительных искусств имени А. С. Пушкина, abbreviated as ) is the largest museum of European art in Moscow, located in Volkhonka street, just oppo ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Et in Arcadia ego (deuxième version).jpg, '' Et in Arcadia ego (The Shepherds of Arcadia)'', second version, late 1630s,
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 ...
File:The dance to the music of time c. 1640.jpg, ''
A Dance to the Music of Time ''A Dance to the Music of Time'' is a 12-volume ''roman-fleuve'' by English writer Anthony Powell, published between 1951 and 1975 to critical acclaim. The story is an often comic examination of movements and manners, power and passivity in Eng ...
'', 1640, Wallace Collection, London Besides classical literature and myth, he drew often from works of the romantic and heroic literature of his own time, usually subjects decided in advance with his patrons. He painted scenes from the epic poem ''Jerusalem Delivered'' by
Torquato Tasso Torquato Tasso ( , also , ; 11 March 154425 April 1595) was an Italian poet of the 16th century, known for his 1591 poem ''Gerusalemme liberata'' ( Jerusalem Delivered), in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between ...
(1544–1595), published in 1581, and one of the most popular books in Poussin's lifetime. His painting ''Renaud and Armide'' illustrated the death of the Christian knight Arnaud at the hands of the magician Armide. who, when she saw his face, saw her hatred turn to love. Another poem by Tasso with a similar theme inspired ''Tancred and Hermiene''; a woman finds a wounded knight on the road, breaks down in tears, then finds the strength through love to heal him. Allegories of death are common in Poussin's work. One of the best-known examples is '' Et in Arcadia ego'', a subject he painted in about 1630 and again in the late 1630s. Idealized shepherds examine a tomb inscribed with the title phrase, "Even in Arcadia I exist", reminding that death was ever-present. A fertile source for Poussin was Cardinal Giulio Rospigliosi, who wrote moralistic theatrical pieces which were staged at the Palace Barberini, his early patron. One of his most famous works, ''A Dance to the Music of Time'', was inspired by another Rospigliosi piece. According to his early biographers Bellori and Felibien, the four figures in the dance represent the stages of life: Poverty leads to Work, Work to Riches, and Riches to Luxury; then, following Christian doctrine, luxury leads back to poverty, and the cycle begins again. The three women and one man who dance represent the different stages and are distinguished by their different clothing and headdresses, ranging from plain to jeweled. In the sky over the dancing figures, the chariot of Apollo passes, accompanied by the Goddess Aurora and the Hours, a symbol of passing time.


Landscapes and townscapes

File:Poussin - Paysage avec saint Jean à Patmos - Chicago Art Institute.jpg, '' Landscape with Saint John on Patmos'', late 1630s,
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Landscape with the Ashes of Phocion - Google Art Project.jpg, '' Landscape with the Ashes of Phocion'', 1648,
Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Stormy Landscape with Pyramus and Thisbe - WGA18334.jpg, ''Landscape with Pyramus and Thisbe'', 1651,
Städel The Städel, officially the ''Städelsches Kunstinstitut und Städtische Galerie'', is an art museum in Frankfurt, with one of the most important collections in Germany. The Städel Museum owns 3,100 paintings, 660 sculptures, more than 4,600 ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - La Mort de Saphire.jpg, ''The Death of Sapphira'', 1654, Louvre Poussin is an important figure in the development of
landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...
painting. In his early paintings the landscape usually forms a graceful background for a group of figures, but later the landscape played a larger and larger role and dominated the figures, illustrating stories, usually tragic, taken from the Bible, mythology, ancient history or literature. His landscapes were very carefully composed, with the vertical trees and classical columns carefully balanced by the horizontal bodies of water and flat building stones, all organized to lead the eye to the often tiny figures. The foliage in his trees and bushes is very carefully painted, often showing every leaf. His skies played a particularly important part, from the blue skies and gray clouds with bright sunlit borders (a sight often called in France "a Poussin sky") to illustrate scenes of tranquility and the serenity of faith, such as the '' Landscape with Saint John on Patmos'', painted in the late 1630s before his departure for Paris; or extremely dark, turbulent and threatening, as a setting for tragic events, as in his ''Landscape with Pyramus and Thisbe'' (1651). Many of his landscapes have enigmatic elements noticeable only with closer inspection; for example, in the center of the landscape with Pyramus and Thisbe, despite the storm in the sky, the surface of the lake is perfectly calm, reflecting the trees. Between 1650 and 1655, Poussin also painted a series of paintings now often called "townscapes", where classical architecture replaces trees and mountains in the background. The painting ''The Death of Saphire'' uses this setting to illustrate two stories simultaneously; in the foreground, the wife of a wealthy merchant dies after being chastised by St. Peter for not giving more money to the poor; while in the background another man, more generous, gives alms to a beggar.


Style and method

File:Bacchanale - Poussin - musée du Prado.jpg, ''Bacchanale'' or ''Bacchus and Ariadne'', 1624–1625,
Prado Museum The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
File:Le Triomphe de David 1630 Madrid, musée du Prado.jpg, ''The Triumph of David'', c. 1630,
Prado Museum The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Le Printemps.jpg, '' The Four Seasons (Spring)'', c. 1664, 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 ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Triumph of Pan - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Triumph of Pan'', c. 1635, Pen and ink with wash, over black chalk and stylus,
Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...
 Throughout his life Poussin stood apart from the popular tendency toward the decorative in French art of his time. In Poussin's works a survival of the impulses of the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
is coupled with conscious reference to the art of
classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...
as the standard of excellence. Rejecting the emotionalism of Baroque artists such as
Bernini Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, , ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 159828 November 1680) was an Italian sculptor and architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prominently the leading sculptor of his ...
and
Pietro da Cortona Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...
, he emphasized the cerebral. His goal was clarity of expression achieved by ''disegno'' or ‘nobility of design’ in preference to ''colore'' or color. During the late 1620s and 1630s, he experimented and formulated his own style. He studied the Antique as well as works such as
Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...
’s
Bacchanal The Bacchanalia were unofficial, privately funded popular Roman festivals of Bacchus, based on various ecstatic elements of the Greek Dionysia. They were almost certainly associated with Rome's native cult of Liber, and probably arrived in Rome ...
s ('' The Bacchanal of the Andrians'', ''
Bacchus and Ariadne ''Bacchus and Ariadne'' (1522–1523) is an oil painting by Titian. It is one of a cycle of paintings on mythological subjects produced for Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, for the Camerino d'Alabastro – a private room in his palazzo in ...
'', and ''
The Worship of Venus __NOTOC__ ''The Worship of Venus'' is an oil on canvas painting by the Italian artist Titian completed between 1518 and 1519, housed at the Museo del Prado in Madrid, Spain. It describes a Roman rite of worship conducted in honour of the goddess ...
'') at the Casino Ludovisi and the paintings of
Domenichino Domenico Zampieri (, ; October 21, 1581 – April 6, 1641), known by the diminutive Domenichino (, ) after his shortness, was an Italian Baroque painter of the Bolognese School of painters. Life Domenichino was born in Bologna, son of a shoem ...
and
Guido Reni Guido Reni (; 4 November 1575 – 18 August 1642) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne. He painted primarily religi ...
. In contrast to the warm and atmospheric style of his early paintings, Poussin by the 1630s developed a cooler palette, a drier touch, and a more stage-like presentation of figures dispersed within a well defined space. In ''The Triumph of David'' (c. 1633–34;
Dulwich Picture Gallery Dulwich Picture Gallery is an art gallery in Dulwich, South London, which opened to the public in 1817. It was designed by Regency architect Sir John Soane using an innovative and influential method of illumination. Dulwich is the oldest pub ...
), the figures enacting the scene are arranged in rows that, like the architectural facade that serves as the background, are parallel to the picture plane. The violence of ''The Rape of the Sabine Women'' (c. 1638; Louvre) has the same abstract, choreographed quality seen in ''
A Dance to the Music of Time ''A Dance to the Music of Time'' is a 12-volume ''roman-fleuve'' by English writer Anthony Powell, published between 1951 and 1975 to critical acclaim. The story is an often comic examination of movements and manners, power and passivity in Eng ...
'' (1639–40). Contrary to the standard studio practice of his time, Poussin did not make detailed figure drawings as preparation for painting, and he seems not to have used assistants in the execution of his paintings. He produced few drawings as independent works, aside from the series of drawings illustrating Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' he made early in his career. His drawings, typically in pen and ink wash, include landscapes drawn from nature to be used as references for painting, and composition studies in which he blocked in his figures and their settings. To aid him in formulating his compositions he made miniature wax figures and arranged them in a box that was open on one side like a theatre stage, to serve as models for his composition sketches.
Pierre Rosenberg Pierre Max Rosenberg (born 13 April 1936) is a French art historian, curator, and professor. Rosenberg is the honorary president a director of the Musée du Louvre in Paris, and since 1995, he has held the 23rd seat of the Académie Française. ...
described Poussin as "not a brilliant, elegant, or seductive draughtsman. Far from it. His lack of virtuosity is, however, compensated for by uncompromising rigour: there is never an irrelevant mark or a superfluous line."


Legacy

In the years following Poussin's death, his style had a strong influence on French art, thanks in particular to
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 ...
, who had studied briefly with Poussin in Rome, and who, like Poussin, became a court painter for the King and later the head of the French Academy in Rome. Poussin's work had an important influence on the 17th-century paintings of
Jacques Stella Jacques Stella (1596 – 29 April 1657) was a French painter, a leading exponent of the neoclassical style of Parisian Atticism. Life Stella was born in Lyon. His father was François Stella, a painter and merchant of Flemish origin, but ...
and Sébastien Bourdon, the Italian painter Pier Francesco Mola, and the Dutch painter
Gerard de Lairesse Gerard or Gérard (de) Lairesse (11 September 1641 – June 1711) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and art theorist. His broad range of skills included music, poetry, and theatre. De Lairesse was influenced by the Perugian Cesare Ripa and Fr ...
. A debate emerged in the art world between the advocates of Poussin's style, who said the drawing was the most important element of a painting, and the advocates of Rubens, who placed color above the drawing. Janson, H.W. (1995) ''History of Art''. 5th edn. Revised and expanded by Anthony F. Janson. London:
Thames & Hudson Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...
, p. 604. During the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
, Poussin's style was championed by
Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David (; 30 August 1748 – 29 December 1825) was a French painter in the Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. In the 1780s, his cerebral brand of history painting marked a change in taste away f ...
in part because the leaders of the Revolution looked to replace the frivolity of French court art with Republican severity and civic-mindedness. The influence of Poussin was evident in paintings such as ''
Brutus Marcus Junius Brutus (; ; 85 BC – 23 October 42 BC), often referred to simply as Brutus, was a Roman politician, orator, and the most famous of the assassins of Julius Caesar. After being adopted by a relative, he used the name Quintus Serv ...
'' and '' Death of Marat''.
Benjamin West Benjamin West, (October 10, 1738 – March 11, 1820) was a British-American artist who painted famous historical scenes such as '' The Death of Nelson'', ''The Death of General Wolfe'', the '' Treaty of Paris'', and '' Benjamin Franklin Drawin ...
, an American painter of the 18th century who worked in Britain, found inspiration for his canvas of ''
The Death of General Wolfe ''The Death of General Wolfe'' is a 1770 painting by Anglo-American artist Benjamin West, commemorating the 1759 Battle of Quebec, where General James Wolfe died at the moment of victory. The painting, containing vivid suggestions of martyrdom, ...
'' in Poussin's ''The Death of Germanicus''. The 19th century brought a resurgence of enthusiasm for Poussin. French writers were seeking to create a national art movement and Poussin became one of their heroes: the founding father of the French School; he appears in plays, stories and novels as well as
physiognomic Physiognomy (from the Greek , , meaning "nature", and , meaning "judge" or "interpreter") is the practice of assessing a person's character or personality from their outer appearance—especially the face. The term can also refer to the general ...
studies. He also became the model for the myth of the child genius, who becomes the miserable artist rejected by society, as can be seen in Francois-Marius Granet's painting of the death of Poussin. One of his greatest admirers was
Ingres Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres ( , ; 29 August 1780 – 14 January 1867) was a French Neoclassical painter. Ingres was profoundly influenced by past artistic traditions and aspired to become the guardian of academic orthodoxy against the a ...
, who studied in Rome and became Director of the French Academy there. Ingres wrote, "Only great painters of history can paint a beautiful landscape. He (Poussin) was the first, and only, to capture the nature of Italy. By the character and taste of his compositions, he proved that such nature belonged to him; so much so that when facing a beautiful site, one says, and says correctly, that it is "Poussinesque". Another 19th-century admirer of Poussin was Ingres' great rival,
Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: Britis ...
; he wrote in 1853: "The life of Poussin is reflected in his works; it is in perfect harmony with the beauty and nobility of his inventions...Poussin was one of the greatest innovators found in the history of painting. He arrived in the middle of the school of mannerism, where the craft was preferred to the intellectual role of art. He broke with all of that falseness". Cézanne appreciated Poussin's version of classicism. "Imagine how Poussin entirely redid nature, that is the classicism that I mean. What I don't accept is the classicism that limits you. I want that a visit to a master will help me find myself. Every time I leave a Poussin, I know better who I am." Cézanne was described in 1907 by
Maurice Denis Maurice Denis (; 25 November 1870 – 13 November 1943) was a French painter, decorative artist, and writer. An important figure in the transitional period between impressionism and modern art, he is associated with ''Les Nabis'', symbolism, a ...
as "the Poussin of Impressionism".
Georges Seurat Georges Pierre Seurat ( , , ; 2 December 1859 – 29 March 1891) was a French post-Impressionist artist. He devised the painting techniques known as chromoluminarism and pointillism and used conté crayon for drawings on paper with a rough su ...
was another
Post-Impressionist Post-Impressionism (also spelled Postimpressionism) was a predominantly French art movement that developed roughly between 1886 and 1905, from the last Impressionist exhibition to the birth of Fauvism. Post-Impressionism emerged as a reaction ag ...
artist who admired the formal qualities of Poussin's work. In the 20th century, some art critics suggested that the analytic
Cubist Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture. In Cubist artwork, objects are analyzed, broken up and reassemble ...
experiments of
Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
and
Georges Braque Georges Braque ( , ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century French painter, collagist, draughtsman, printmaker and sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his alliance with Fauvism from 1905, and the role he play ...
were also founded upon Poussin's example. In 1963 Picasso based a series of paintings on Poussin's ''The Rape of the Sabine Women''.
André Derain André Derain (, ; 10 June 1880 – 8 September 1954) was a French artist, painter, sculptor and co-founder of Fauvism with Henri Matisse. Biography Early years Derain was born in 1880 in Chatou, Yvelines, Île-de-France, just outside Paris. In ...
,
Jean Hélion Jean Hélion (April 21, 1904October 27, 1987) was a French painter whose abstract work of the 1930s established him as a leading modernist. His midcareer rejection of abstraction was followed by nearly five decades as a figurative painter. He w ...
,
Balthus Balthasar Klossowski de Rola (February 29, 1908 – February 18, 2001), known as Balthus, was a Polish-French modern artist. He is known for his erotically charged images of pubescent girls, but also for the refined, dreamlike quality of his image ...
,Rewald, Sabine (1984). ''Balthus''. New York: Harry N. Abrams. p. 82. . and
Jean Hugo Jean Hugo (19 November 1894 – 21 June 1984) was a painter, illustrator, theatre designer and author. He was born in Paris and died in his home at the Mas de Fourques, near Lunel, France. Brought up in a lively artistic environment, he began ...
were other modern artists who acknowledged the influence of Poussin. Markus Lüpertz made a series of paintings in 1989–90 based on Poussin's works. The finest collection of Poussin's paintings today is 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 ...
in Paris. Other significant collections are in the National Gallery in London; the National Gallery of Scotland; the
Dulwich Picture Gallery Dulwich Picture Gallery is an art gallery in Dulwich, South London, which opened to the public in 1817. It was designed by Regency architect Sir John Soane using an innovative and influential method of illumination. Dulwich is the oldest pub ...
; the Musée Condé, Chantilly; the
Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the larges ...
, Saint Petersburg; and the
Museo del Prado The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
, Madrid.


Gallery

File:Cephalus and Aurora - Poussin - 1627-30 National Gallery, London.jpg, ''
Cephalus Cephalus (; Ancient Greek: Κέφαλος ''Kephalos'' means "head") is a name used both for the hero-figure in Greek mythology and carried as a theophoric name by historical persons. ''Mythological'' * Cephalus, son of Hermes and Herse. * Ceph ...
and
Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...
'', 1627,
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
, London File:Acis and galatea - Poussin -1629 - Dublin National Gallery of Art.jpg, '' Acis and Galatea'', 1629,
National Gallery of Ireland The National Gallery of Ireland ( ga, Gailearaí Náisiúnta na hÉireann) houses the national collection of Irish and European art. It is located in the centre of Dublin with one entrance on Merrion Square, beside Leinster House, and another on ...
, Dublin File:Vénus dormant avec l'Amour - 1627-1628, Dresde, Gemäldegalerie.jpg, '' Sleeping Venus with Cupid'', 1630,
Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister The Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (, ''Old Masters Gallery'') in Dresden, Germany, displays around 750 paintings from the 15th to the 18th centuries. It includes major Italian Renaissance works as well as Dutch and Flemish paintings. Outstand ...
, Dresden File:Nicolas Poussin - Mars and Venus - Google Art Project (559039).jpg, ''Mars and Venus'', c. 1630,
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...
File:Nymphe chevauchant un bouc - Nicolas Poussin - The Hermitage Museum.jpg, ''Venus, a Faun and Putti'', 1630s,
Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the larges ...
, Saint Petersburg File:Poussin, Nicolas - The Adoration of the Magi - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Adoration of the Magi'', 1633,
Dulwich Picture Gallery Dulwich Picture Gallery is an art gallery in Dulwich, South London, which opened to the public in 1817. It was designed by Regency architect Sir John Soane using an innovative and influential method of illumination. Dulwich is the oldest pub ...
, London File:Nicolas Poussin - L'Enlèvement des Sabines (1634-5).jpg, ''The Abduction of the Sabine Women'', c. 1633–1634,
The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - The Adoration of the Golden Calf - WGA18293.jpg, '' The Adoration of the Golden Calf'', 1633–1634,
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
, London File:The Crossing fo The Red Sea.jpg, '' The Crossing of the Red Sea'', 1633–1634,
National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - Helios and Phaeton with Saturn and the Four Seasons.jpg, ''Helios and Phaeton with Saturn and the Four Seasons'', c. 1635 File:Diane et Endymion 1630 Detroit Institute of Art.jpg, ''Diana and
Endymion Endymion primarily refers to: * Endymion (mythology), an Ancient Greek shepherd * ''Endymion'' (poem), by John Keats Endymion may also refer to: Fictional characters * Prince Endymion, a character in the ''Sailor Moon'' anime franchise * Raul ...
'', 1630s,
Detroit Institute of Arts The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), located in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, has one of the largest and most significant art collections in the United States. With over 100 galleries, it covers with a major renovation and expansion project comple ...
File:Nicolas Poussin, French - The Birth of Venus - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Birth of Venus'', 1635 or 1636 File:Nicolas Poussin - The Triumph of Pan, 1636.jpg, ''The Triumph of Pan'', 1636,
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
, London File:Nicolas Poussin - The Sacrament of Ordination (Christ Presenting the Keys to Saint Peter) - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Sacrament of Ordination (Christ Presenting the Keys to Saint Peter) '', c. 1636–1640,
Kimbell Art Museum The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, hosts an art collection as well as traveling art exhibitions, educational programs and an extensive research library. Its initial artwork came from the private collection of Kay and Velma Kimbell, wh ...
File:Sainte Famille - Poussin - National Gallery of Ireland.jpg, ''Holy Family'', c. 1649,
National Gallery of Ireland The National Gallery of Ireland ( ga, Gailearaí Náisiúnta na hÉireann) houses the national collection of Irish and European art. It is located in the centre of Dublin with one entrance on Merrion Square, beside Leinster House, and another on ...
File:Discovery of Achilles on Skyros by Nicholas Poussin ca. 1656 pubdom.jpg, ''Discovery of Achilles on Skyros'', c. 1649–1650,
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...
File:Nicolas Poussin - The Holy Family with St Elizabeth and John the Baptist - WGA18338.jpg, ''The Holy Family with St Elizabeth and John the Baptist'', c. 1655,
Hermitage Museum The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the larges ...
File:Nicolas Poussin (French - Landscape with a Calm - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Landscape with a Calm'', 1650–1651,
Getty Center The Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California, is a campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust. The $1.3 billion center opened to the public on December 16, 1997 and is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views overl ...
File:L'Annonciation, vers 1655, Londres, National Gallery.jpg, ''The Annunciation'', c. 1655–1657,
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
, London


See also

* :Paintings by Nicolas Poussin * List of Nicolas Poussin paintings * Poussinists and Rubenists


References


Citations


Sources

* * Web. * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* *
Blunt, Anthony Anthony Frederick Blunt (26 September 1907 – 26 March 1983), styled Sir Anthony Blunt KCVO from 1956 to November 1979, was a leading British art historian and Soviet spy. Blunt was professor of art history at the University of London, dire ...
(1966). ''The Paintings of Nicolas Poussin: A Critical Catalogue''. London: Phaidon. * * * Cropper, Elizabeth and Charles Dempsey (1995). ''Nicolas Poussin: Friendship and the Love of Painting''. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995. * Friedländer, Walter (1964). ''Nicolas Poussin: A New Approach''. New York: Abrams. 1964. * Keazor, Henry (1998). ''Poussins Parerga. Quellen, Entwicklung und Bedeutung der Kleinkompositionen in den Gemälden Nicolas Poussins''. Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg. * Kimmelman, Michael
"When Poussin Drew for Himself"
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', 23 February 1996. Retrieved 16 February 2013. *Tina Mansueto, ''Nicolas Poussin, Il Rinascimento arcadico del XVII secolo'', Paolo Loffredo iniziativeditoriali, Naples, 2016, . * * Serres, Michel (1995). ''Genesis'' (Grasset). Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. . * Standring, Timothy
"Poussin's Erotica"
''
Apollo (magazine) ''Apollo'' is an English-language monthly magazine covering the visual arts of all periods from antiquity to the present day. History and profile ''Apollo'' was founded in 1925, in London. The contemporary ''Apollo'' features a mixture of revie ...
'', 2009-03-01. Retrieved 28 May 2009. * Thuillier, Jacques (1995). ''Nicolas Poussin''. Paris: Flammarion. * Thuillier, Jacques (1995). ''Poussin before Rome: 1594–1624'', translated from the French by Christopher Allen (1995). London, New York and Chicago: Richard L. Feigen & Co. * Unglaub, Jonathan (2006). ''Poussin and the Poetics of Painting: Pictorial Narrative and the Legacy of Tasso''. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006.


Exhibitions

*Paris 1960. "Poussin peintre: retrospectif". Galvanized the renewed interest in Poussin. *Fort Worth 1988. "Poussin: The Early Years in Rome: The Origins of French Classicism". *Paris 1994. "Nicolas Poussin 1594–1665" Grand Palais. *New York City 2008. "Poussin and Nature: Arcadian Visions". Metropolitan Museum of Art; Poussin's landscapes. *London 2021. "Poussin and the Dance". National Gallery of Art


External links

*
A 16min educational film about Nicolas Poussin

NicolasPoussin.org
– 92 works by Nicolas Poussin * *Julia L. Valiela,
"The Baptism of Christ, by Nicolas Poussin (cat. 773),"
' in
The John G. Johnson Collection: A History and Selected Works
', a Philadelphia Museum of Art free digital publication. {{DEFAULTSORT:Poussin, Nicolas 1594 births 1665 deaths People from Eure French Baroque painters French history painters * Mythology in art Premiers peintres du Roi