François-Guillaume Ménageot (1744–1816) was a French painter of religious and French historical scenes. A pupil of

François Boucher François Boucher ( , ; ; 29 September 1703 – 30 May 1770) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher, who worked in the Rococo style. Boucher is known for his idyllic and voluptuous paintings on classical themes, decorative allegories ...

(1703–1770), he went on to win the Grand Prix de Rome and become a director of the

French Academy in Rome The French Academy in Rome (, ) is an academy located in the Villa Medici, within the Villa Borghese, on the Pincio (Pincian Hill) in Rome, Italy. History The Academy was founded at the Palazzo Capranica in 1666 by Louis XIV under the dire ...

, an

academician An academician is a full member of an artistic, literary, engineering, or scientific academy. In many countries, it is an honorific title used to denote a full member of an academy that has a strong influence on national scientific life. Accor ...

and a member of the Institute.

Biography

Ménageot was born in London, the son of Augustin Ménageot (d 1784), an art dealer and adviser to

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 along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a prominent figure during th ...

. François-Guillaume trained under first Jean-Baptiste-Henri Deshays, then Joseph-Marie Vien, and finally

(1703–1770), in his early works adopting the latter's style and use of warm, light colours. His 1766 ''

Tomyris Tomyris (; Saka: ; ; ) also called Thomyris, Tomris, or Tomiride, was a queen of the Massagetae who ruled in the 6th century BCE. Tomyris is known only from the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus of Halicarnassus, according to whom ...

Plunging the Head of

Cyrus Cyrus () is a Persian-language masculine given name. It is historically best known as the name of several List of monarchs of Iran, Persian kings, most notably including Cyrus the Great, who founded the Achaemenid Empire in 550 BC. It remains wid ...

into a Bowl of Blood'' (Paris, Ecole Normale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts) won the

Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

and a stay at the French Academy in Rome from 1769 to 1774. Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil

The Académie Royale in Paris approved François-Guillaume as a history painter in 1777, and he then exhibited ''The Farewells of

Polyxena In Greek mythology, Polyxena (; ) was the youngest daughter of King Priam of Troy and his queen, Hecuba. She does not appear in Homer, but in several other classical authors, though the details of her story vary considerably. After the fall of ...

Hecuba Hecuba (; also Hecabe; , ) was a queen in Greek mythology, the wife of King Priam of Troy during the Trojan War. Description Hecuba was described by the chronicler John Malalas, Malalas in his account of the ''Chronography'' as "dark, good eyes ...

'' (

Chartres Chartres () is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Eure-et-Loir Departments of France, department in the Centre-Val de Loire Regions of France, region in France. It is located about southwest of Paris. At the 2019 census, there were 1 ...

, Musée des Beaux-Arts) at the Salon, and it received a good reception, as did his entrance piece ''Learning Resisting the Passage of Time'' (1780; Paris, Ecole Normale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts) and his 1781 ''Death of Leonardo da Vinci in the Arms of Francis I'' (Amboise, Hôtel de Ville). He and other painters led French painting to return to the Grand Style, with more horizontal compositions, more sculptural drapery, colder colouring and set in ever more monumental architecture. He died in Paris.

Works

*''Tomyris Plunging the Head of Cyrus into a Bowl of Blood'' (1766; Paris, Ecole Normale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts) *''The Farewells of Polyxena to Hecuba'' (1777; Chartres, Musée des Beaux-Arts) *''The Plague of Jerusalem'' (1779;

Douai Douai ( , , ; ; ; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord département in northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe (rive ...

, Collégiale Saint-Pierre) *''Learning Resisting the Passage of Time'' (1780; Paris, Ecole Normale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts) *''Death of

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 1452 - 2 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested o ...

in the Arms of Francis I'' (1781;

Amboise Amboise (; ) is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. Today a small market town, it was once home to the French royal court. Geography Amboise lies on the banks of the river Loire, east of Tours. It is also about awa ...

, Hôtel de Ville) *''

Astyanax In Greek mythology, Astyanax (; ''Astyánax'', "lord of the city") was the son of Hector, the crown prince of Troy, and of his wife, Princess Andromache of Cilician Thebe."Astyanax". ''Oxford Classical Dictionary''. Oxford, 1949, p. 101 (''s.v. ...

Torn from the Arms of

Andromache In Greek mythology, Andromache (; , ) was the wife of Hector, daughter of Eetion, and sister to Podes. She was born and raised in the city of Cilician Thebe, over which her father ruled. The name means "man battler", "fighter of men" or "m ...

'' (1783, Angers, Musée des Beaux-Arts) *'' Cleopatra Paying her Last Respects to Anthony'' (1785; Angers, Musée des Beaux-Arts) *''The Continence of Scipio'' (1787; Zidlochovice Museum) *''

Meleager In Greek mythology, Meleager (, ) was a hero venerated in his '' temenos'' at Calydon in Aetolia. He was already famed as the host of the Calydonian boar hunt in the epic tradition that was reworked by Homer. Meleager is also mentioned as o ...

Implored by his Family'' (1789; Paris, Louvre) *''Adoration of the shepherds'', church of

Villeneuve-sur-Yonne Villeneuve-sur-Yonne () is a commune in the Yonne department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in north-central France. It is surrounded by a partly intact wall, built during the 12th century, which was one of the 8 residences of the French kings. G ...

*''Adoration of the shepherds'', church of Saint-Eustache, Paris *''Hercules at Rest'' *''Wedding of
uguste Amalie von Bayern with Eugène de Beauharnais
in the Residence in Munich on 13 Jan. 1806'' *'' Tullia Driving her Chariot over the Body of her Father''

References

Sources

Dr. Jean-Pierre Lafouge on Ménageot's ''The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian''

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Menageot, Francois-Guillaume 1744 births 1816 deaths French neoclassical painters Prix de Rome for painting 18th-century French painters French male painters 19th-century French painters Painters from London 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists