Antoine Plamondon
Encyclopedia
Life
Plamondon was born in 1804 (or 1802) at L'Ancienne-Lorette, QuebecL'Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec
L'Ancienne-Lorette is a city in central Quebec, Canada. It is a suburb of and an enclave within Quebec City. It was merged with Quebec City from January 1, 2002, to December 31, 2005, but was re-established as a separate city on January 1, 2006....
, the son of the village grocer. He went to school in Saint-Roch, a suburb of Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, after which he was apprenticed to Joseph Légaré
Joseph Légaré
Joseph Légaré was a painter and glazier, artist, seigneur and political figure in Lower Canada.-Early life:...
(1795–1855), a picture restorer and amateur painter. In 1826 Plamondon travelled to Paris where he studied with classical portraitists such as Paulin Guérin (1783–1855). Works from this period are scarce.
In 1830, after the Louis-Philippe
Louis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
uprisings, Plamondon returned to Quebec. While his portraits were of living subjects, many of his religious paintings (commissioned by various churches and religious orders around Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
) were based on engravings of old masters. His portrait work was notable for his full-face, close-up, and tightly comosed style as well as a concentration on the latest style of clothing. His later portraits showed more roundness in the modelling and far more space in the composition.
By 1850 Plamondon had moved to the country at Neuville
Neuville, Quebec
Neuville is a village on the north shore of the Saint Laurence River, just west of Quebec City, part of the Portneuf Regional County Municipality, Quebec, Canada. It was founded in 1684, and has remained quite picturesque throughout these years....
, with his mother, a brother, and a sister, where he lived until the 1890s. Much of his work during this period were religious paintings, copies of old masters, done for local churches.
Plamondon never married. He was a lifelong monarchist and supporter of the Conservative Party, a friend of Sir George-Étienne Cartier
George-Étienne Cartier
Sir George-Étienne Cartier, 1st Baronet, PC was a French-Canadian statesman and Father of Confederation.The English spelling of the name, George, instead of Georges, the usual French spelling, is explained by his having been named in honour of King George III....
and Sir Étienne Taché, but broke with the Conservatives over the execution of Louis Riel
Louis Riel
Louis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....
. His 1882 self-portrait was probably his last work He died in Neuville in 1895.