''Portrait of Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples'' is an 1814 oil on canvas painting by the French Neoclassical artist Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres.

Caroline Murat Carolina Maria Annunziata Bonaparte Murat Macdonald (French: ''Caroline Marie Annonciade Bonaparte''; 25 March 1782 – 18 May 1839), better known as Caroline Bonaparte, was an Imperial French princess; the seventh child and third daughter of Car ...

, née Bonaparte, was the sister of

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

, and married Joachim Murat, a

Marshal of France Marshal of France (french: Maréchal de France, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1 ...

and Admiral of France, and later King of Naples. Caroline commissioned the portrait as part of an effort to convey her standing and worth to reign as Queen of Naples during an unstable political climate.Dahlin, 47 Long considered lost or destroyed since the fall of Murat in 1815, the painting was rediscovered in 1987 by the art historian Hans Naef. It is now in a private collection in New York.

Commission

Caroline was an art lover, and in 1814 commissioned a number of paintings from Ingres, her favored artist. These include his '' Grande Odalisque'', its now lost sister piece '' La Dormeuse de Naples'', and ''

Paolo and Francesca Francesca da Rimini or Francesca da Polenta (died between 1283 and 1286) was a medieval noblewoman of Ravenna, who was murdered by her husband, Giovanni Malatesta, upon his discovery of her affair with his brother, Paolo Malatesta. She was a co ...

''. The painting was completed shortly before the 1815 collapse of the Naples regime after Napoleon's empire crumbled following his defeat of the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

. Joachim was executed by firing squad in October of that year (his wife lived until 1839). Consequently, Ingres's was not paid for his earlier commissions.Conisbee, 144 The painting was begun in Naples,He had moved to Naples in March 1814 and completed after he had moved to Rome in May 1815.Conisbee, 147 Caroline Murat dessin Ingres

Ingres' created several preparatory studies, including close-ups of her face, and full sketch of the family. Due to the artist's exacting and precise approach and technique, the undertaking was long and slowly moving. Both Caroline and Ingres considered painting to be unfinished.

Description

Her regal pose is reminiscent of Napoleon in Ingres' ''

Bonaparte, First Consul ''Bonaparte, First Consul'' (''Bonaparte, Premier Consul'') is an 1804 portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte as First Consul by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. The painting is now in the collection of the Curtius Museum in Liège. Posing the hand insi ...

'' of 1804.Conisbee, 146 Ingres shows her in full length, dress in a long, high waisted black velvet dress and

pelisse A pelisse was originally a short fur-trimmed jacket which hussar light-cavalry soldiers from the 17th century onwards usually wore hanging loose over the left shoulder, ostensibly to prevent sword cuts. The name also came to refer to a fashionab ...

. Her expression is pious, while her black hat is trimmed with ostrich feathers. She stands in the royal apartment in Naples, before a large bay window which looks out to Mount Vesuvius. The painting is filled with luxurious, prestige items appealing to both Italian and French taste.

Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or se ...

influence can be seen in the heavy velvet and lace.Dahlin, 48

Notes

Sources

*Dahlin, Brittany. "Caroline Murat: Powerful Patron of Napoleonic France and Italy". Brigham Young University, 2014. *Conisbee, Philip. ''Portraits by Ingres: Image of an Epoch''. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1999. {{Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres

Murat Murat may refer to: Places Australia * Murat Bay, a bay in South Australia * Murat Marine Park, a marine protected area France * Murat, Allier, a commune in the department of Allier * Murat, Cantal, a commune in the department of Cantal Elsewhe ...

1814 paintings

Commission

Description

See also

Notes

Sources