Alexander Roslin
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Alexander Roslin (spelled Alexandre in French, ; 15 July 17185 July 1793) was a Swedish portrait painter who worked in
Scania Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne ...
, Bayreuth, Paris, Italy,
Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
and
St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, primarily for members of aristocratic families. He combined insightful psychological portrayal with a skillful representation of fabrics and jewels. His style combined
Classicist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
tendencies with the lustrous, shimmering colours of
Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
, a jocular, elegant and ornate style. He lived in France from 1752 until 1793, a period that spanned most of his career. The painting by Roslin depicting Jeanne Sophie de Vignerot du Plessis, Countess of Egmont Pignatelli, was bought by the
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 ...
in 2006 for US$3 million.


Life

Alexander Roslin was born on 15 July 1718, in
Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal pop ...
, Sweden, the son of naval physician Hans Roslin and Catherine Wertmüller. After showing an unusual talent for drawing and painting, he trained in drawing at Karlskrona under Admiralty Captain Lars Ehrenbill (1697–1747) in order to become a naval draughtsman, and then began to paint miniatures. Stockholm had become an intellectual and artistic center since Queen Christina had established connections with Paris, and Alexander Roslin moved there. At the age of sixteen he became apprenticed to the court painter Georg Engelhard Schröder in Stockholm, studying painting there until 1741 and beginning to paint large portraits in oils. Schröder was influenced by
Hyacinthe Rigaud Jacint Rigau-Ros i Serra (; 18 July 1659 – 29 December 1743), known in French as Hyacinthe Rigaud (), was a Catalan-French baroque painter most famous for his portraits of Louis XIV and other members of the French nobility. Biography Rigaud ...
and
Nicolas de Largillière Nicolas de Largillière (; 10 October 1656 – 20 March 1746) was a French portrait painter, born in Paris. Biography Early life Largillière's father, a merchant, took him to Antwerp at the age of three. As a boy, he spent nearly two years i ...
.Roslin, Alexander
Web Gallery of Art, retrieved 17 February 2014.
In 1741, Roslin settled in Gothenburg, and the following year moved to Scania, where he remained until 1745 painting portraitsHerman Hofberg
"Roslin, Alexander"
''Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon'' (In Swedish)
and also creating religious paintings for the church at Hasslöv. In 1745, Roslin left Sweden for Bayreuth, where he had been invited to work for Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach.Bo Gentili
"Alexander Roslin 1718–1793"
, Kulturarv Malmö, 18 August 2010, retrieved 17 February 2014
In 1747, he moved to Italy to study the works of the great masters. While in Italy he portrayed, among others, the family of Philip, Duke of Parma in 1752. In the same year Roslin moved to Paris, at the age of 34, where he settled for the rest of his life. Here, in 1759, he married the pastel painter Marie-Suzanne Giroust (1734–1772). The couple had three sons and three daughters. In 1768 Roslin painted her dressed in Bolognese fashion, ''Lady with Veil'', a portrait that the art critic, writer and philosopher
Denis Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the '' Encyclopédie'' along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a promi ...
judged "très piquante". In 1767 he painted a double portrait of them both; she is depicted working in pastels on a portrait of Henrik Wilhelm Peill, while Roslin points at a gold box he received from Peill as a present. The frame of the painting is inscribed ''Loin et près'' (''Far away and yet close''), showing that the portrait was a token of friendship.Didier Rykner
"Two Paintings by Alexandre Roslin for Versailles and Stockholm"
''The Art Tribune'', 6 December 2013.
This painting was purchased by the
Swedish National Museum Nationalmuseum (or National Museum of Fine Arts) is the national gallery of Sweden, located on the peninsula Blasieholmen in central Stockholm. The museum's operations stretches far beyond the borders of Blasieholmen, the nationalmuseum manage ...
in 2013.


Career

In Paris he was a protégé of François Boucher and his work rapidly became fashionable. He was chosen as a member of the French
Art Academy An art school is an educational institution with a primary focus on the visual arts, including fine art – especially illustration, painting, photography, sculpture, and graphic design. Art schools can offer elementary, secondary, post-seco ...
,Maarten Levendig
"Alexander Roslin: The Lady with the Veil (1768); Nationalmuseum, Stockholm"
Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, 23 June 2013.
to which his wife also belonged. His early portraits are painted in bright, cool colours, and show the influence of
Jean-Marc Nattier Jean-Marc Nattier (17 March 1685 – 7 November 1766) was a French painter. He was born in Paris, the second son of Marc Nattier (1642–1705), a portrait painter, and of Marie Courtois (1655–1703), a miniaturist. He is noted for hi ...
and
Hyacinthe Rigaud Jacint Rigau-Ros i Serra (; 18 July 1659 – 29 December 1743), known in French as Hyacinthe Rigaud (), was a Catalan-French baroque painter most famous for his portraits of Louis XIV and other members of the French nobility. Biography Rigaud ...
. Around the 1760s he started using daring colouring in his paintings, such as in the portrait of his wife, ''Lady with Veil'' (1768), and the ''Jennings Family'' (1769)."''The Lady with the Veil'' by Alexander Roslin
, Nationalmuseum, retrieved 17 February 2014.
Roslin had great technical skill in painting the surfaces and texture of precious materials such as fabrics and jewels, but was also adept at capturing his sitters at their best. In Paris he soon became one of the foremost portraitists of his time, valued mostly for practiced rendering of luxurious fabrics and gentle complexions: "Satin, skin? Go to Roslin." His portraits of members of the French aristocracy show sensitivity and taste and also psychological insight, although changes in taste might make his faces seem "stiff and lifeless" to some observers today. In 1765 he scored a significant triumph when his portrait of Louis, Duke of La Rochefoucauld and his family, painted in competition with
Jean-Baptiste Greuze Jean-Baptiste Greuze (, 21 August 1725 – 4 March 1805) was a French painter of portraits, genre scenes, and history painting. Biography Early life Greuze was born at Tournus, a market town in Burgundy. He is generally said to have formed h ...
, was awarded the prize. He also painted several portraits of members of the French royal family and foreign princes, including the Swedish king
Gustav III Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of Adolf Frederick of Sweden and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Prussia. Gustav was a vocal opponent of what ...
and his brothers. In the second half of the 18th century, having one's portrait painted by Roslin was the highpoint of public esteem. In 1771 Roslin, although a foreigner (often called ''Roslin le suédois'', "Roslin the Swede"), was awarded a pension and a free apartment in the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...
. The following year he was awarded the Royal
Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III. It was u ...
by his native country, after which he was also called ''Roslin le Chevalier'' ("Roslin the knight")."The Nationalmuseum in Stockholm Presents Alexander Roslin – Sweden's Forgotten Art Icon"
''ArtDaily'', 2007, retrieved 17 February 2014.
He was often surrounded by Swedish visitors to Paris, such as Peill. He was also a good friend of the influential Swedish politician Count
Carl Gustaf Tessin Count Carl Gustaf Tessin (5 September 1695 – 7 January 1770) was a Swedish Count and politician and son of architect Nicodemus Tessin the Younger and Hedvig Eleonora Stenbock. He was one of the most brilliant personages of his day, and the mo ...
. After his wife's death, during the years 1774–75, Roslin visited Sweden, where he had been elected a member of the
Royal Swedish Academy of Arts The Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts ( sv, Kungliga Akademien för de fria konsterna), commonly called the Royal Academy, is located in Stockholm, Sweden. An independent organization that promotes the development of painting, sculpture, archite ...
, oddly enough as a foreign honorary member. During the visit, he painted the members of the Swedish royal family, his self-portrait while painting the king, and also portraits of the statesman
Carl Fredrik Scheffer Carl Fredrik Scheffer (28 April 1715 – 27 August 1786) was a Swedish count, diplomat, privy counsellor, politician and writer. He was a Knight of the Royal Order of the Seraphim, and a Commander of the Order of the Polar Star. Life Scheffer's f ...
and the naturalist
Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his Nobility#Ennoblement, ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalise ...
. On his way back to Paris he visited
St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, where he painted several portraits of Empress Catherine II of Russia and some notable portraits of Russian aristocrats between 1775 and 1777. Catherine tried to persuade him to stay in her service, but Roslin declined and returned to France. He died in Paris on 5 July 1793 of natural causes after surviving 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 coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...
and outliving many of his patrons; at that time he was the wealthiest artist in Paris. File:Countess Françoise Marguerite de Grignan (1646-1705).jpg, '' Countess Françoise Marguerite de Grignan'' the daughter of
Madame de Sévigné Madame may refer to: * Madam, civility title or form of address for women, derived from the French * Madam (prostitution), a term for a woman who is engaged in the business of procuring prostitutes, usually the manager of a brothel * ''Madame'' ...
, 1753 File:Alexander Roslin 021.jpg, '' Katarzyna Mniszech'', 1752 File:Flora (Museum of Bordeaux).jpg, ''
Flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' ...
'' or '' Hebe''


Works

Stylistically, his paintings are
Classicist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
in some respects, but primarily
Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...
. The vast majority show members of the European nobility and of leading political and cultural circles. Roslin was enormously successful among members of French high society, becoming one of the wealthiest artists of the era in France. He painted a number of portraits of Russian Imperial statesmen, including images of
Ivan Betskoi Ivan Ivanovich Betskoi or Betskoy (russian: Ива́н Ива́нович Бе́цкой; ) was an educational reformer in the Russian Empire who served as Catherine II's advisor on education and President of the Imperial Academy of Arts for thir ...
and his sister Anastasia Ivanovna, and of
Ivan Shuvalov Ivan Ivanovich Shuvalov (russian: link=no, Ива́н Ива́нович Шува́лов; 1 November 172714 November 1797) was called the Maecenas of the Russian Enlightenment and the first Russian Minister of Education. Russia's first theat ...
. He also painted some notable portraits of
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
and French aristocratic ladies. He signed his works ''Roslin Suédois''. As a member of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture Roslin exhibited his paintings at the
Salon de Paris The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...
, the official exhibition of members' work. Founded in 1725 the Salon became, between 1748 and 1890, the greatest biannual art event in the Western world. From 1753 Roslin exhibited 18 times at the Salon. Roslin's popularity with both his foreign and his Swedish audiences during his lifetime is undisputed. He was one of the foremost portrait painters of his time, widely known for his masterful ability to reproduce his sitters' fashionable garments with their silks, lace, pearls and gold filaments. Roslin's ability to capture the personality of the people he depicted made him popular with his clients and allows us, even today a few hundred years later, to still feel close to the people he painted. He flattered and beautified his subjects according to the Rococo ideal. Roslin's portrait of Anne Vallayer-Coster is praised particularly and became much debated after the Salon. In ''Le Véridique au Salon'', published in 1783, it was described as one that "belonged to the artist's best". The picture has been compared to the contemporary artist Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun's celebrated self-portrait. Roslin depicted his model in a cool colour scale; in green, white, and blue, with the artist's attributes of palette and brushes, a common way for artists to depict themselves. Because of this, Roslin's painting was sometimes misinterpreted by art historians as a self-portrait by Vallayer-Coster.


Gallery

File:Roslin Neubourg-Cromiere 01.JPG, ''Baroness de Neubourg-Cromière'' (1756) File:Alexander Roslin - King Gustav III of Sweden and his Brothers - Google Art Project.jpg, '' King Gustav III of Sweden and his Brothers'' (1771) File:The artist Anne Vallayer-Coster.jpg, ''
Anne Vallayer-Coster Anne Vallayer-Coster (21 December 1744 – 28 February 1818) was a major 18th-century French painter best known for still lifes. She achieved fame and recognition very early in her career, being admitted to the Académie Royale de Peinture e ...
'', French painter, 1783 File:Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz1.jpg, ''
Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz (30 January 1716 – 1 March 1796) was a Swedish architect and civil servant. Adelcrantz's style developed from a rococo influenced by Carl Hårleman, the leading architect in Sweden in the early years of his career, to a ...
'', Swedish architect (1754) File:Alexander Roslin - The Comtesse d'Egmont Pignatelli in Spanish Costume.jpg, '' Jeanne Sophie de Vignerot du Plessis, Countess of Egmont Pignatelli'' (1763) File:Carl von Linné.jpg, Swedish botanist and originator of binomial nomenclature, ''
Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his Nobility#Ennoblement, ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalise ...
'' (1775) File:Alexander Roslin 026.jpeg, ''Baron Thure Leonard Klinckowström'' (1758) File:Alexander Roslin - John Jennings Esq., his Brother and Sister-in-Law - Google Art Project.jpg, John Jennings, Esq. with his Brother and Sister-in-Law (1769) File:Maria Amalia of Austria by Roslin.jpg, ''Archduchess Maria Amalia of Austria (later Maria Amalia, Duchess of Parma)'' File:Portrait of Empress Catherine II.jpg, ''Empress
Catherine the Great of Russia , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anha ...
'' (1780s) File:Roslin Anastasia Ivanovna, Countess of Hesse-Homburg, Princess Trubetskaya.jpg, ''Anastasia Ivanovna, Hereditary Princess of Hesse-Homburg, Princess Trubetskaya'' File:Jean-François Marmontel.jpg, '' Jean-François Marmontel'', French historian and writer (1767) File:Alexandre Roslin, Louis de France, dauphin (1765) - 002.jpg, '' Louis de France, the Dauphin of France'', the heir to the throne of France (1765) File:Alexander Roslin - Portrait of Prince Vladimir Golitsyn Borisovtj - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Prince
Vladimir Borisovich Golitsyn Prince Vladimir Borisovich Golitsyn (russian: Владимир Борисович Голицын; 21 June 1731 – 25 December 1798) was a Russian statesman. Early life 21 June 1731. He was the son of Admiral Prince Boris Vasilevich Golitsyn (17 ...
'' (1762) File:Christian VII 1772 by Roslin.jpg, ''King
Christian VII of Denmark Christian VII (29 January 1749 – 13 March 1808) was a monarch of the House of Oldenburg who was King of Denmark–Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1766 until his death in 1808. For his motto he chose: "''Gloria ex amore patriae'' ...
'' (1772) File:Collin de Vermont (Versailles).jpg, '' Hyacinthe Collin de Vermont'', French painter File:Carl Fredrik Scheffer - riksråd.jpg, ''
Carl Fredrik Scheffer Carl Fredrik Scheffer (28 April 1715 – 27 August 1786) was a Swedish count, diplomat, privy counsellor, politician and writer. He was a Knight of the Royal Order of the Seraphim, and a Commander of the Order of the Polar Star. Life Scheffer's f ...
'', Swedish
riksråd Riksrådet (in Norwegian and Swedish), Rigsrådet (in Danish) or (English: the Council of the Realm and the Council of the State – sometimes translated as the "Privy Council") is the name of the councils of the Scandinavian countries that rule ...
(privy councilor) File:Alexander Roslin 025.jpeg, ''Jean-Baptiste Eugénie Du Mangin or Jean-Baptiste Dumangin'' France (1789)


See also

*
List of Swedish artists This is a list of notable Swedish visual artists. A * Emma Adbåge (born 1982), illustrator *Ottilia Adelborg (1855–1936), illustrator *Ulla Adlerfelt (1736–1765) * Sofia Adlersparre (1808–1862), painter *Mattias Adolfsson (born 1965), ...


References


Further reading

* Magnus Olausson and Eva-Lena Karlsson (eds.) ''Alexander Roslin''. Exhibition catalog. Nationalmusei utställningskatalog 652. Stockholm: Nationalmuseum, 2007.


External links


Gallery of Roslin's WorkNeil Jeffares, Dictionary of pastellists before 1800, online edition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roslin, Alexander 1718 births 1793 deaths 18th-century Swedish painters 18th-century Swedish male artists Swedish male painters Court painters People from Malmö Rococo painters Swedish portrait painters Burials at Montmartre Cemetery 18th-century French painters French male painters 19th-century French painters French portrait painters Age of Liberty people 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists