Claude François (painter)
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Claude François (1614 - 17 May 1685) was a French painter and
Recollect The Franciscan Recollects () were a French reform branch of the Friars Minor, a Franciscan order. Denoted by their gray habits and pointed hoods, the Recollects devoted their lives to an extra emphasis on prayer, penance, and spiritual reflecti ...
Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...
friar. He is better known as Frère Luc (''Brother Luke''), the name he adopted after becoming a monk.


Life

He was born in
Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...
and studied drawing and the initial principals of art there, before moving to Paris to complete his training under
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 ...
, whose style he closely copied throughout his life. From there he went to Rome to copy the old masters there. It was also there that he painted an ''Assumption of the Virgin'' as a high altarpiece for the
Jacobin The Society of the Friends of the Constitution (), renamed the Society of the Jacobins, Friends of Freedom and Equality () after 1792 and commonly known as the Jacobin Club () or simply the Jacobins (; ), was the most influential political cl ...
church back in Amiens, aged only twenty. This painting, a copy from a work by
Jacopo Bassano Jacopo Bassano (c. 1510 – 14 February 1592), known also as Jacopo dal Ponte, was an Italian painter who was born and died in Bassano del Grappa near Venice, and took the village as his surname. Having trained in the workshop of his father, Fran ...
, was valued at 6,000
écu The term ''écu'' () may refer to one of several France, French coins. The first ''écu'' was a gold coin (the ''écu d'or'') minted during the reign of Louis IX of France, in 1266. The value of the ''écu'' varied considerably over time, and si ...
s in 1635. He then returned to Paris, where he took monastic vows aged 30 at the Récollets du faubourg Saint-Martin. It is said that he fell from the top of pont du Cange into the
river Somme The Somme ( , ; ) is a river in Picardy, northern France. The river is in length, from its source in the high ground of the former at Fonsomme near Saint-Quentin, to the Bay of the Somme, in the English Channel. It lies in the geologica ...
aged fifteen and only escaped death by a kind of miracle and that he had seen the Virgin Mary and promised her to become a monk. After fulfilling this promise, he produced a painting of saint Augustine presenting a dead child to the Madonna and Child, with a canvas shown behind her showing his fall into the Somme. Hardouin de Perefixe, archbishop of Paris, made several offers to ordain him as a priest, but Luc was so humble that he wanted no more than the diaconate. He was sent to the Récollet monastery at
Châlons-en-Champagne Châlons-en-Champagne () is a city in the Grand Est region of France. It is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, despite being only a quarter the size of the city of Reims. Formerly called Châlons ...
and briefly stayed at the one in
Lesneven Lesneven (; ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. It lies northeast of Brest, about from the English Channel in the middle of the Leon plateau. History Lesneven has its origins in the immigration f ...
, before leaving for
Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...
early in 1670. During his fifteen-month stay in New France, Frère Luc created large religious history compositions, such a
''La Sainte Famille à la Huronne'' (''The Holy Family with a Huron Woman'')
These artworks were designed to inspire faith and were intended for various churches and chapels in the capital and nearby areas. Frère Luc's contributions marked the start of using large works to adorn the sacred spaces of Quebec City, while also exploring themes of colonization and Christian missionary work. He also designed the reconstruction of Quebec's monastery and seminary. He returned to France at the end of 1671, working on the decorative paintings in the
Louvre Palace The Louvre Palace (, ), often referred to simply as the Louvre, is an iconic French palace located on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris, occupying a vast expanse of land between the Tuileries Gardens and the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxe ...
. The chapel of the convent in
Sézanne Sézanne () is a commune in the Marne department and Grand Est region in north-eastern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Sézannais''. Population Notable people * Leonie Aviat, Saint * Floresca Guépin (1813–1889), feminist, teacher, ...
(the convent later became a hospital) still holds several works by him, since he stayed for some years in the convent. The canvases he produced as an altarpiece for the Récollet convent chapel in
Châlons-en-Champagne Châlons-en-Champagne () is a city in the Grand Est region of France. It is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, despite being only a quarter the size of the city of Reims. Formerly called Châlons ...
are still in Châlons-en-Champagne, partly in the Musée des beaux-arts et d'archéologie de Châlons-en-Champagne and partly in the Collégiale Notre-Dame-en-Vaux. His final surviving painting is ''Our Lady of the Rosary'', produced in 1680 for the chapel of the Salpêtrière. His students included
Roger de Piles Roger de Piles (7 October 1635 – 5 April 1709) was a French painter, engraver, art critic and diplomat. Life Born in Clamecy, Nievre, Clamecy, Roger de Piles studied philosophy and theology, and devoted himself to painting. In 1662 he became ...
, Arnould de Vuez and Claude Simpol.


Works

* Frère Luc (né Claude François)
''L’ange gardien'' (''The Guardian Angel'')
1671, oil on canvas, 248 x 159.5 cm, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, Quebec City. * Frère Luc (né Claude François)
''La Sainte Famille à la Huronne'' (''The Holy Family with a Huron Woman'')
c.1671, oil on canvas, 121.9 x 106.7 cm, Musée des Ursulines de Québec, Pôle culturel du monastère des Ursulines, Quebec City. * After 1664 and before 1685 : ''The Immaculate Conception'', for the église Notre-Dame-de-la-Visitation de Champlain; *''
Saint Memmius Saint Memmius () is venerated as the first bishop of Châlons-sur-Marne (now ''Châlons-en-Champagne''), and founder of the diocese. According to tradition, Memmius was a Roman citizen who was consecrated by Saint Peter and sent to Gaul to conver ...
'', painted for the Récollet monastery in Châlons, now in the Collégiale Notre-Dame-en-Vaux de Châlons-en-Champagne; *''Saint Francis'', painted for the Récollet monastery in Châlons, now in the Collégiale Notre-Dame-en-Vaux de Châlons-en-Champagne; *''The Road to Calvary'', in the Collégiale Notre-Dame-en-Vaux de Châlons-en-Champagne; * ''Nativity'' (parish church of Saint-Michel in
Lesneven Lesneven (; ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. It lies northeast of Brest, about from the English Channel in the middle of the Leon plateau. History Lesneven has its origins in the immigration f ...
) *
Musée de Picardie The Musée de Picardie is the main museum of Amiens and Picardy, in France. It is located at 48, rue de la République, Amiens. Its collections include artifacts ranging from prehistory to the 19th century, and form one of the largest regio ...
,
Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...
. Puy d'Amiens from 1666, offered by François Quignon : "''Croix aimable à Jésus quoiqu'ignominieuse''". * Ottawa, Musée des beaux-arts du Canada, ''Saint Bonaventure'', achat en 1998. * Musée des beaux-arts et d'archéologie de Châlons-en-Champagne, ''Saint Francis Presented to Christ'', ''God Surrounded by Angels'' and ''Two Angels'' * Musée de Fécamp, ''Achilles and Ulysses Leaving Scyros'', Legs Fessard, 1995. * Collégiale Notre-Dame-et-Saint-Loup de Montereau-Faut-Yonne, ''Mise au Tombeau''.


References


Bibliography

* Gaston Laplatte, ''Hôpital-hospice de Sézanne, fondé en 1164 par Henri Ier, comte de Champagne et de Brie. Notice sur les tableaux se trouvant dans la chapelle et la salle des délibérations de la commission administrative'', Sézanne, imprimerie de A. Patoux, 1912. * Marie-Thérèse Laureilhe, « Le Frère Luc (1614-1685), Récollet, peintre de saint François », ''Bulletin de la société de l'histoire de l'art français'', 1984. * Françoise Nicolle, ''Frère Luc, Un peintre du s XVIIe à Sézanne'', Rotary Club de Sézanne, Sézanne, 1996. *
Jérôme Montcouquiol, "Quelques petits formats de frère Luc (1614-1685)
on la tribunedelart.com * Jérôme Montcouquiol et Jean-Christophe Baudequin, "Nouveaux suppléments à l'étude de frère Luc", http://www.latribunedelart.com/nouveaux-supplements-a-l-etude-de-frere-luc-1614-1685


External links

*

- La Tribune de l'Art *
Église de Champlain, official site
* Grandbois, Michèle.
Claude François, Known as Frère Luc (1614–1685)
" ''Quebec City Art & Artists: An Illustrated History,'' 2025. Toronto: Art Canada Institute. {{DEFAULTSORT:Francois, Claude French Franciscans 17th-century French painters Artists from Amiens Painters from Hauts-de-France 1614 births 1685 deaths