Cornélie Barbe Hyacinthe Jacquemart (), known as Nélie (; 25 July 1841– 15 May 1912) was a French painter, art collector and patron of the arts.

Biography

She was born in Paris. Her parents had moved there from Meurthe in 1835 so that her father, Joseph, could work as a "relais" (a type of campaign worker) for , a local candidate for National Deputy. Her mother, Marie, may have been a milliner and her father appears to have died shortly after her birth. Much is uncertain, as she later destroyed many early documents, to conceal her plebeian origins.Julie Verlaine, "Nélie Jacquemart (1841-1912) : Peintre et collectionneuse", in: ''Femmes collectionneuses d'art et mécènes : de 1880 à nos jours'', Paris, Éditions Hazan, 2013 ) When she displayed an early talent for art, she became a protégée of De Vatry's wife, , and spent summers at their hunting lodge in the former

Chaalis Abbey Chaalis Abbey (, ) was a French Cistercian abbey north of Paris, at Fontaine-Chaalis, near Ermenonville, now in Oise. History It was founded in 1136 by Louis VI of France. There had previously been a Benedictine monastery in the same place. Mo ...

. There, she developed her drawing skills and met many prominent figures who had been involved in the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * Ab ...

. Thanks to Mme. de Vatry, she was able to study in the workshop of

Léon Cogniet Léon Cogniet (29 August 1794 – 20 November 1880) was a French history and portrait painter. He is probably best remembered as a teacher, with more than one hundred notable students. Biography He was born in Paris. His father was a painter ...

, a Professor at the

École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts 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 The Seine ( , ) is a river in nor ...

, which did not accept female students at that time. The lessons were given by Cogniet's sister,

Marie-Amélie Maria Amalia may refer to: * Maria Amalia of Courland (1653–1711), princess of Courland from the Ketteler family * Maria Amalia of Nassau-Dillenburg (1582–1635), royal of the House of Nassau * Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily (1782–1866), Q ...

, and consisted largely of copying Cogniet's works. Edouard-Andre--Nelie-Jacquemart

Her first public exposure came from an unusual source. In 1858, Malka Kachwar, the Queen of Oudh, died in Paris on her way home from London. She was buried with great ceremony at Père-Lachaise. Jacquemart was there, with Léon Cogniet, and created numerous sketches of the event. An editor at ''

L'Illustration ''L'Illustration'' (; 1843–1944) was a French language, French illustrated weekly newspaper published in Paris. It was founded by Édouard Charton with the first issue published on 4 March 1843, it became the first illustrated newspaper in ...

'' named Aristide Merille had them made into lithographs by

Évremond de Bérard Évremond de Bérard (30 June 1824 – 25 January 1881) was a French painter and lithographer. He spent much of his life travelling, and was present at the opening of the Suez Canal. Biography In 1843, he began four years of study in Paris with ...

and Jules Worms and published them in the magazine later that year. Her first showing at the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

came in 1863 when she was only twenty-two. She received several commissions as a result. At the Salon of 1866, one of her works was purchased by the government and was on display at the

Palais des Tuileries The Tuileries Palace (, ) was a palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the Seine, directly in the west-front of the Louvre Palace. It was the Parisian residence of most French monarchs, from Henri IV to Napoleon III, until it was ...

until it and the building were destroyed during the Commune. In 1867, she was able to travel to Italy, where she studied with

Ernest Hébert Antoine Auguste Ernest Hébert (; 3 November 1817 – 5 December 1908) was a French academic painter. Biography Hébert was born in Grenoble, son of a notary in Grenoble, and moved in 1835 to Paris to study law. He simultaneously took ar ...

, Director of the

Académie de France à 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 direc ...

. While she was there, she befriended Geneviève Bréton, a relative of

Louis Hachette Louis Christophe François Hachette (; 5 May 1800 – 31 July 1864) was a French publisher who established a Paris publishing house designed to produce books and other material to improve the system of school instruction. Publications were initia ...

, who kept a detailed diary that sheds light on Jacquemart's character and activities. Through Bréton, she met the writer , son of the Minister of Education,

Victor Duruy Jean Victor Duruy (; 10 September 1811 – 25 November 1894) was a French historian and statesman. Life Duruy was born in Paris, the son of a factory worker, and at first intended for his father's trade. Having passed brilliantly through the � ...

, whose portrait she painted. After that, according to Bréton, she thought of little but getting married. Her portrait of Duruy was awarded a medal at the Salon of 1870.

Art collector

Shortly after, the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

began. Among its victims was her friend, the painter

Henri Regnault Alexandre Georges Henri Regnault (31 October 1843 – 19 January 1871) was a French painter. Biography Regnault was born in Paris, the son of Henri Victor Regnault. On leaving school he successively entered the studios of Antoine Montfort, Lo ...

, who died defending Paris. She continued to paint, however. After the war, she was commissioned to do a portrait of President

Adolphe Thiers Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe Thiers ( ; ; 15 April 17973 September 1877) was a French statesman and historian who served as President of France from 1871 to 1873. He was the second elected president and the first of the Third French Republic. Thi ...

. She also did a portrait of the art collector,

Édouard André Édouard François André (; 17 July 1840 – 25 October 1911) was a French horticulturalist, landscape designer, as well as a leading landscape architect of the late 19th century, famous for designing city parks and public spaces in Lithuan ...

. Nine years later, she married him, although there is no evidence to indicate they had a relationship. He was ill at the time and his family insisted on a marriage contract that established a complete separation of their respective personal properties. Despite this arrangement. their collections, both begun many years before, began to merge. Eventually, she decided to hyphenate her name as Jacquemart-André. Palais abbatial Abbaye de Chaalis - aile ouest

Palais abbatial Abbaye de Chaalis - aile ouest

The couple travelled throughout Europe, Egypt and Turkey, adding to their collection. Altogether, they acquired 207 sculptures and 97 paintings. They were particularly interested in

Italian Renaissance art Italian Renaissance painting is the painting of the period beginning in the late 13th century and flourishing from the early 15th to late 16th centuries, occurring in the Italian Peninsula, which was at that time divided into many political stat ...

and caused a scandal when they bought

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es by

Tiepolo Giovanni Battista Tiepolo ( , ; 5 March 1696 – 27 March 1770), also known as Giambattista (or Gianbattista) Tiepolo, was an Italian painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice who painted in the Rococo style, considered an importa ...

at the Palazzo Contarini-Pisani, near

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

. There was a vitriolic attack in the press and many called for a ban on removing them from Italy. Nevertheless, the frescoes were removed and are now in the couple's townhouse (now the

Musée Jacquemart-André The Musée Jacquemart-André (, ) is a private museum located at 158 Boulevard Haussmann in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, 8th arrondissement of Paris. The museum was created from the private home of Édouard André (art collector), Édouard An ...

) on the

Boulevard Haussmann The Boulevard Haussmann (), long from the 8th to the 9th arrondissement, is one of the wide tree-lined boulevards created in Paris by Napoleon III, under the direction of his Prefect of the Seine, Baron Haussmann. The Boulevard Haussmann is mo ...

. After Édouard's death in 1894, she produced a copy of a document giving her possession of the entire joint collection. His family disputed its authenticity, but she won the case. After taking possession, she expanded the collection to include medals and English paintings. In 1902, she discovered that Mme.de Vatry's estate had been sold, including Chaalis Abbey. Luckily, she was able to acquire the Abbey and housed part of her collection there. She also ordered a funerary monument, showing her with palette and brush in hand, although she had painted very little in almost thirty years. She died in 1912, at her home on the Boulevard Haussmann in Paris.''

Le Temps ' (, ) is a Swiss French-language daily newspaper published in Berliner format in Geneva by Le Temps SA. The paper was launched in 1998, formed out of the merger of two other newspapers, and (the former being a merger of two other papers), ...

'', Nécrologie (obituary), 18 May 1912
online
/ref> She was interred in the chapel at the Abbey, adorned with frescoes by

Francesco Primaticcio Francesco Primaticcio (; April 30, 1504 – 1570) was an Italian Mannerism, Mannerist Painting, painter, architect and sculpture, sculptor who spent most of his career in France. Biography Born in Bologna, he trained under Giulio Romano ( ...

. In accordance with an agreement she had made with Édouard, all of her possessions were bequeathed to the

Institut de France The ; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the . It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute manages approximately ...

. One year later, two Musées Jacquemart-André were inaugurated and opened to the public; one in Paris and one at the Abbey.

References

External links

*. *. *. *. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacquemart, Nelie 1841 births 1912 deaths 19th-century French painters 20th-century French painters French art collectors Women art collectors Museum founders 20th-century French women painters

Biography

Art collector

References

Further reading

External links