Gabriel François Doyen (; 20 May 1726,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

– 13 March 1806,

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

) was a French painter of historical and mythological scenes.

Biography

His father, a royal upholsterer, initially opposed his wishes to become an artist but, at the age of twelve, he began taking lessons from

Charles-André van Loo Carle or Charles-André van Loo (; 15 February 1705 – 15 July 1765) was a French painter, son of the painter Louis-Abraham van Loo, a younger brother of Jean-Baptiste van Loo and grandson of Jacob van Loo. He was the most famous member of a s ...

. Making rapid progress, he obtained the

Grand 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 ...

at the age of twenty. In 1748, he set out for Italy and, in 1752, became associated with the Academy of France in Rome. Later, he travelled throughout Italy, studying the works 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 shoe ...

Annibale Carracci Annibale Carracci ( , , ; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome. Along with his brother Agostino Carracci, Agostino and cousin Ludovico Carracci, Ludovico (with whom the Ca ...

, Pietro Berrettini da Cortona,

Giulio Romano Giulio Pippi ( – 1 November 1546), known as Giulio Romano and Jules Romain ( , ; ), was an Italian Renaissance painter and architect. He was a pupil of Raphael, and his stylistic deviations from High Renaissance classicism help define the ...

and

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (6March 147518February 1564), known mononymously as Michelangelo, was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was inspir ...

. While in Venice, he was greatly influenced by the work of the famous colourists, such as

Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...

. In 1755 returned to Paris and, at first unappreciated and disparaged, he resolved by one grand effort to achieve a reputation, and in 1758 he exhibited his ''Death of Virginia''. It was completely successful and, in 1761, it procured him admission to the ''

Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture The Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture (; ) was founded in 1648 in Paris, France. It was the premier art institution of France during the latter part of the Ancien Régime until it was abolished in 1793 during the French Revolution. I ...

''. Doyen was also influenced by

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish painting, Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged comp ...

, after a visit to Antwerp. This influence is, perhaps, best displayed in his ''Le Miracle des ardents'', painted for the Church of St. Roch (1767). This painting was exhibited in the

Salon of 1767 The Salon of 1767 was an art exhibition held at the Louvre in Paris. It took place during the reign of Louis XV and was overseen by the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture, Académie Royale. It was proceeded by the Salon of 1765 and follo ...

, which was recorded by Saint-Aubin in his "View of the salon of 1767'". Art historian

Michael Levey Sir Michael Vincent Levey, LVO, FBA, FRSL (8 June 1927 – 28 December 2008) was a British art historian and was the director of the National Gallery from 1973 to 1986. Biography Levey was born in Wimbledon, London, and grew up in Leigh-on-S ...

described this painting as the 'high point' in the artist's career, suggesting the drama of the piece may be a precursor to that which characterises the French Romantic painting of the 19th century. He notes how the writhing figures of the foreground are similar to those found in ''

The Raft of the Medusa ''The Raft of the Medusa'' ( ) – originally titled ''Scène de Naufrage'' (''Shipwreck Scene'') – is an oil painting of 1818–1819 by the French Romantic painter and lithographer Théodore Géricault (1791–1824). Completed when the ar ...

'' by

Théodore Géricault Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault (; 26 September 1791 – 26 January 1824) was a French painter and lithographer, whose best-known painting is '' The Raft of the Medusa''. Despite his short life, he was one of the pioneers of the Romanti ...

. In 1773 Doyen painted his ''The Last Communion of St Louis'' for the high altar of the chapel at the

École Militaire École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

; it is strongly reminiscent of ''The Last Communion of St Jerome'' by

and displays a sharp clarity of message, required by its position far above the high altar. Another notable work of this period in Doyen's life is the ''Triumph of Thetis'' for the chapel of the

Invalides The Hôtel des Invalides (; ), commonly called (; ), is a complex of buildings in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, France, containing museums and monuments, all relating to the military history of France, as well as a hospital and an old sold ...

. In 1776 he was appointed professor at the academy. By the middle of the 1780s, his style was going out of fashion. During the initial stages of the French Revolution he became active in the national museum project and created an art depository at the Petit Augustin. In 1792, however, he left France for Russia on the invitation of

Catherine II Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter III ...

. He settled in

St Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, where he was admitted to the

Imperial Academy of Arts The Imperial Academy of Arts, informally known as the Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, was an art academy in Saint Petersburg, founded in 1757 by Ivan Shuvalov, the founder of the Imperial Moscow University, under the name ''Academy of th ...

and helped decorate several palaces. His students included Andrey Ivanov. He died there in 1806.

Selected paintings

Sleeping Bacchantes).jpg, Sleeping

Bacchante In Greek mythology, maenads (; ) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of his retinue, the ''thiasus''. Their name, which comes from μαίνομαι (''maínomai'', “to rave, to be mad; to rage, to be angry ...

s (c.1782) Louis XVI Chevaliers du Saint-Esprit.jpg,

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

Receives Homage from the Knights of the Holy Spirit in

Reims Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...

(c.1775) Collection Motais de Narbonne - Le sacrifice d'Iphigénie - Gabriel-François Doyen.jpg, The Sacrifice of

Iphigenia In Greek mythology, Iphigenia (; , ) was a daughter of King Agamemnon and Queen Clytemnestra, and thus a princess of Mycenae. In the story, Agamemnon offends the goddess Artemis on his way to the Trojan War by hunting and killing one of Artem ...

(1749) Gabriel Doyen - Triomphe d'Aphitrite ou la Pêche - 1768.jpg, The Triumph of

Amphitrite In ancient Greek mythology, Amphitrite (; ) was the goddess of the sea, the queen of the sea, and her consort is Poseidon. She was a daughter of Nereus and Doris (or Oceanus and Tethys).Roman, L., & Roman, M. (2010). Under the influence ...

(1768)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doyen, Gabriel Francois 1726 births 1806 deaths Painters from Paris 18th-century French painters French male painters 19th-century French painters Prix de Rome for painting French emigrants to the Russian Empire 19th-century French male artists 18th-century French male artists

Biography

Selected paintings

References

Further reading

External links