Portrait of Israel Silvestre by Le Brun - israel-silvestre-fr

Israel Silvestre (13 August 1621 in Nancy – 11 October 1691 in

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 ...

), called the Younger to distinguish him from his father, was a prolific French draftsman,

etcher Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...

and print dealer who specialized in topographical views and perspectives of famous buildings. Orphaned at an early age, he was taken in by his uncle in

, Israel Henriet, an etcher and print-seller, and friend of

Jacques Callot Jacques Callot (; – 1635) was a baroque printmaker and drawing, draftsman from the Duchy of Lorraine. He is an important person in the development of the old master print. He made more than 1,400 etchings that chronicled the life of his peri ...

. Between 1630 and 1650 Silvestre travelled widely in France, Spain and Italy, which he visited three times, and later worked up his sketches as etchings, which were sold singly and in series. His work, especially of Venetian subjects published in the 1660s, influenced eighteenth-century painters of ''

vedute A ''veduta'' (; : ''vedute'') is a highly detailed, usually large-scale painting or, more often, print of a cityscape or some other vista. The painters of ''vedute'' are referred to as ''vedutisti''. Origins This genre of landscape originated ...

'' such as

Luca Carlevaris Luca Carlevarijs or Carlevaris (20 January 1663 – 12 February 1730) was an Italian painter and engraver working mainly in Venice. He pioneered the genre of the cityscapes ('' vedute'') of Venice, a genre that was later widely followed by arti ...

and

Canaletto Giovanni Antonio Canal (18 October 1697 – 19 April 1768), commonly known as Canaletto (), was an Italian painter from the Republic of Venice, considered an important member of the 18th-century Venetian school. Painter of cityscapes or ...

, who adapted his compositions. In 1661 he inherited Henriet's stock of plates, among which was a large part of the works of Callot, and many of those of

Stefano della Bella Stefano della Bella (18 May 1610 – 12 July 1664) was an Italian draughtsman and printmaker known for etchings of a great variety of subjects, including military and court scenes, landscapes, and lively genre scenes. He left 1052 prints, and sev ...

. In 1662 he was appointed ''dessinateur et graveur du Roi'' and in 1673 he was appointed drawing-master to Louis, ''le Grand Dauphin''. From 1668 he was granted workshop space in the galleries of the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, where the practice of housing eminent artists and craftsmen was a tradition that was originated under Henri IV. Silvestre's atelier was large: he had at least two pupils who had separate careers as engravers, François Noblesse and Meunier. In 1670

Charles Le Brun Charles Le Brun (; baptised 24 February 1619 – 12 February 1690) was a French Painting, painter, Physiognomy, physiognomist, Aesthetics, art theorist, and a director of several art schools of his time. He served as a court painter to Louis XIV, ...

Le Brun painted portraits of Israel Silvestre and his wife. recommended him for membership in 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 ...

. In 1675 his son, the artist

Louis de Silvestre Louis de Silvestre (23 June 1675 – 11 April 1760), also known as Louis de Silvestre the Younger, was a French portrait and history painter. He was court painter to Augustus II the Strong, King Augustus II of Poland, and director of the Dres ...

, was born at Sceaux. At his death he left a large collection of drawings, more than a thousand engravings, and other works of art to his sons, whose own artistic tastes he had nurtured. The family collection was sold at auction in 1810.

Gallery of images

The royal party at the enchanted gardens at the Royal Opera of Versailles, theater during the reign of

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

, on May 7-13 1664. File:Israël Silvestre, Première journée, 1664.jpg, '' The first feast day'' ('' Première Journée'') at L'Île Enchantée (The Enchanted Island), given by

at Royal Opera of Versailles (Versailles Theatre). ''Cruising by the Knights of Charlemagne'' (7 May 1664).

Bibliothèque nationale de France The (; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites, ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository of all that is published in France. Some of its extensive collections, including bo ...

. File:La Fête-Les Plaisirs de l'Ile Enchantée-donnée par Louis XIV à Versailles-Théâtre.jpg, ''The second feast day'' (''Deuxième Journée'') at L'Île Enchantée (The Enchanted Island), given by

at Royal Opera of Versailles (Versailles Theatre). ''Princess d'Elide'' (8 May 1664). File:Les Plaisirs de L'Isle enchantee Troisieme journee Theatre.jpg, ''The third feast day'' (''Troisième Journée'') at L'Île Enchantée (The Enchanted Island), given by

at Royal Opera of Versailles (Versailles Theatre). ''Ballet at the castle Alcina'' (9 May 1664).

Notes

Sources

* * Silvestre, E. de (1869). ''Renseignements sur quelques peintres et graveurs des XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles: Israël Silvestre et ses descendants'', 2nd edition. Paris: Impr. de Madame veuve Bouchard-Huzard.
Copy
at Google Books.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silvestre, Israel French draughtsmen French printmakers French etchers 17th-century etchers 1621 births 1691 deaths Artists from Nancy, France

Gallery of images

Notes

Sources

Further reading

External links