Jean Perréal
Encyclopedia
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, sculptor and limner
Limner
A limner is an illuminator of manuscripts, or more generally, a painter of ornamental decoration. One of the earliest mentions of a limner's work is found in the book Methods and Materials of Painting by Charles Lock Eastlake .-Scotland:...
of illuminated manuscripts. He was active mostly in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as well.
Perréal’s major patrons were Charles of Bourbon, King Charles VIII
Charles VIII of France
Charles VIII, called the Affable, , was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. Charles was a member of the House of Valois...
, Louis XII and Francis I
Francis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
, all of France. It is mentioned that in honor of Charles of Bourbon he painted escutcheons for the entry of the nobleman to the city of Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, but the date of Charles' birth, 1489, and the time of the artist's residence in Lyons do not coincide accurately. His most remarkable works are often considered to be a portrait of Charles VIII (Musée Condé) and a miniature piece, Pierre Sala, an image of a poet who, like Perréal, was a royal valet de chambre
Valet de chambre
Valet de chambre , or varlet de chambre, was a court appointment introduced in the late Middle Ages, common from the 14th century onwards. Royal Households had many persons appointed at any time...
. A letter from Perréal to Margaret of Austria circa 1511 survives describing the relative merits of marble and alabaster, signed 'Jehan Perreal de Paris, votre Valet de Chambre et paintre indigne.'
He was an accomplished designer of tombs, medals, theater scenery and ceremonies, including the marriage of King Louis XII and his second wife Mary Tudor. For the marriage, Perréal was sent to London in 1514, where he also executed a portrait of Mary Tudor. Working in a glazed paint pigment on glass, he also crafted a unique portrait of Louis XII, entitled Louis XII of France in Prayer (Walters Art Museum
Walters Art Museum
The Walters Art Museum, located in Baltimore, Maryland's Mount Vernon neighborhood, is a public art museum founded in 1934. The museum's collection was amassed substantially by two men, William Thompson Walters , who began serious collecting when he moved to Paris at the outbreak of the American...
). As a sculptural designer, Perréal sketched the design for the tomb of Francis II, Duke of Brittany
Tomb of Francis II, Duke of Brittany
The tomb of Francis II, Duke of Brittany is a monument located in Nantes, in the Cathedral of St. Peter. The project was commissioned by Anne of Brittany, Queen of France, who was the daughter of Francis and his second wife Margaret of Foix, who is also depicted beside Francis. The tomb was...
, which was executed by the French sculptor Michel Colombe
Michel Colombe
Michel Colombe was a French sculptor whose work bridged the late Gothic and Renaissance styles.Born in Bourges into a family of artisans, he was active in Tours. Colombe's surviving works all date from his old age. He created the gisant figures of the two deceased children of Charles VIII of...
, and is now in the cathedral of Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
.
In 1516, he painted an allegorical
Allegory
Allegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
image, la complainte de nature à l'alchimiste errant (The Lament of Nature to the Wandering Alchemist), in which a winged figure with arms crossed, representing Nature
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...
, sits on a tree stump with branches that have been intricately shaped, with a fire burning in its base, conversing with an alchemist
Alchemist
An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy. Alchemist may also refer to:-People and groups:*The Alchemist , a hip hop music producer and rapper*Alchemist , an Australian progressive metal band...
in an ankle-length coat, standing outside of his stone-laid shoreline laboratory. Live resprouting shoots emerge from either side of the tree stump seat to form a fancifully twined and pleached
Pleaching
Pleaching is a technique to weave the branches of trees into a hedge or to form a quincunx. Commonly, deciduous trees are planted in lines, then pleached to form a flat plane on clear stems above the ground level. Branches are woven together and lightly tied...
two-story-tall chair back.
His style is noted as keeping to the elegant French tradition, as well as a touch of Flemish realism
Realism (arts)
Realism in the visual arts and literature refers to the general attempt to depict subjects "in accordance with secular, empirical rules", as they are considered to exist in third person objective reality, without embellishment or interpretation...
.
Selected works
- 1498 - Portrait of Charles VIII, Oil, (Musée Condé, ChantillyChantilly, OiseChantilly is a small city in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune in the department of Oise.It is in the metropolitan area of Paris 38.4 km...
)http://translate.google.com/translate?langpair=fr|en&u=http://www.culture.gouv.fr/public/mistral/joconde_fr?ACTION=CHERCHER%26FIELD_1=AUTR%26VALUE_1=PERREAL%20Jean%26DOM=All%26REL_SPECIFIC=1%26IMAGE_ONLY=CHECKED - 1516 - The Lament of Nature to the Wandering Alchemist (la complainte de nature à l'alchimiste errant), miniature, (Musée Marmottan Monet, ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
)http://www.marmottan.com/uk/enluminures/jean_perreal.asp - 1520 - Portrait of Mary Tudor, Oil on panel, (National Portrait Gallery, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
)http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp?search=sa&LinkID=mp07417&rNo=0&role=art