Robert Le Lorrain
Encyclopedia
Robert Le Lorrain was a French baroque
sculptor who was born in Paris. He was born into a family of bureaucrats, the son of Claude Le Lorrain, a business agent of Nicolas Fouquet
, Louis XIV's
Minister of Finance. Le Lorrain was a student of the French sculptor, painter, and architect, Pierre Paul Puget
(1620-1694). At age eighteen, Le Lorrain entered François Girardon's
studio; aside from collaborating with him, he was commissioned to instruct Girardon's children in drawing and to supervise his other pupils. Le Lorrain won the Prix de Rome
in 1689, On his return to Paris he first joined the Académie de Saint-Luc
, and then was received into the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture (Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in Paris) in 1701; he became Rector of the Académie in 1737. His major non-royal clients were members of the house of Rohan. His students included Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne
(1704-1778) and Jean-Baptiste Pigalle
(1714-1785). Robert Le Lorrain died in Paris in 1743.
Disappointingly few works by this highly accomplished master have survived. His best-known work is the stone relief, The Horses of the Sun, over the stable doors at the Hôtel de Rohan, Paris; sculptures executed in 1718-21 for the Cardinal de Rohan at the Château de Saverne
were lost in the fire in the château in 1779, but sculptures for the palais Rohan, Strasbourg, survive. Though Le Lorrain's works for Marly
have been dispersed or lost, as have church monuments in Paris and Orléans, sculpture in the chapel at Versailles
survives.
The Courtauld Institute of Art
(London), the Honolulu Academy of Arts
, the J. Paul Getty Museum
(Los Angeles), the Liechtenstein Museum
(Vienna), the Louvre
, and the National Gallery of Art
(Washington D.C.), and are among the public collections holding sculpture by Robert Le Lorrain. He is known to have been a prolific draughtsman: no drawings securely attributed to him survive.
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
sculptor who was born in Paris. He was born into a family of bureaucrats, the son of Claude Le Lorrain, a business agent of Nicolas Fouquet
Nicolas Fouquet
Nicolas Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Île, vicomte de Melun et Vaux was the Superintendent of Finances in France from 1653 until 1661 under King Louis XIV...
, Louis XIV's
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
Minister of Finance. Le Lorrain was a student of the French sculptor, painter, and architect, Pierre Paul Puget
Pierre Paul Puget
Pierre Paul Puget was a French painter, sculptor, architect and engineer.-Biography:Puget was born in Marseille. At the age of fourteen he carved the ornaments of the galleys built in the shipyards of his native city, and at sixteen the decoration and construction of a ship were entrusted to him...
(1620-1694). At age eighteen, Le Lorrain entered François Girardon's
François Girardon
François Girardon was a French sculptor.He was born at Troyes. As a boy he had for master a joiner and wood-carver of his native town, named Baudesson, under whom he is said to have worked at the chateau of Liebault, where he attracted the notice of Chancellor Séguier...
studio; aside from collaborating with him, he was commissioned to instruct Girardon's children in drawing and to supervise his other pupils. Le Lorrain won the Prix de Rome
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome was a scholarship for arts students, principally of painting, sculpture, and architecture. It was created, initially for painters and sculptors, in 1663 in France during the reign of Louis XIV. It was an annual bursary for promising artists having proved their talents by...
in 1689, On his return to Paris he first joined the Académie de Saint-Luc
Académie de Saint-Luc
The Académie de Saint-Luc was a painters' guild set up in Paris in 1391 by the Provost of Paris, along the lines of the Guilds of Saint Luke in the rest of Europe...
, and then was received into the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture (Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in Paris) in 1701; he became Rector of the Académie in 1737. His major non-royal clients were members of the house of Rohan. His students included Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne
Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne
Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne was a French sculptor, among the greatest French portraitists. He was the pupil of his father, Jean-Louis Lemoyne, and of Robert Le Lorrain....
(1704-1778) and Jean-Baptiste Pigalle
Jean-Baptiste Pigalle
Jean-Baptiste Pigalle was a French sculptor.He was born in Paris, the seventh child of a carpenter. Although he failed to obtain the Grand Prix, after a severe struggle he entered the Académie Royale and became one of the most popular sculptors of his day.His earlier work, such as Child with Cage ...
(1714-1785). Robert Le Lorrain died in Paris in 1743.
Disappointingly few works by this highly accomplished master have survived. His best-known work is the stone relief, The Horses of the Sun, over the stable doors at the Hôtel de Rohan, Paris; sculptures executed in 1718-21 for the Cardinal de Rohan at the Château de Saverne
Saverne
Saverne is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France. It is situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a pass over the Vosges Mountains, and 45 km N.W...
were lost in the fire in the château in 1779, but sculptures for the palais Rohan, Strasbourg, survive. Though Le Lorrain's works for Marly
Château de Marly
The Château de Marly was a relatively small French royal residence located in what has become Marly-le-Roi, the commune that existed at the edge of the royal park. The town that originally grew up to service the château is now a dormitory community for Paris....
have been dispersed or lost, as have church monuments in Paris and Orléans, sculpture in the chapel at Versailles
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles , or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. In French it is the Château de Versailles....
survives.
The Courtauld Institute of Art
Courtauld Institute of Art
The Courtauld Institute of Art is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art. The Courtauld is one of the premier centres for the teaching of art history in the world; it was the only History of Art department in the UK to be awarded a top...
(London), the Honolulu Academy of Arts
Honolulu Academy of Arts
The Honolulu Academy of Arts is an art museum in Honolulu in the state of Hawaii. Since its founding in 1922 by Anna Rice Cooke and opening April 8, 1927, its collections have grown to over 40,000 works of art.-Description:...
, the J. Paul Getty Museum
J. Paul Getty Museum
The J. Paul Getty Museum, a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust, is an art museum. It has two locations, one at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, and one at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, California...
(Los Angeles), the Liechtenstein Museum
Liechtenstein Museum
The Liechtenstein Museum is in Vienna, Austria, named after the princely House of Liechtenstein, one of Europe's oldest noble families. The museum includes the Princely Collections containing important European works of art, forming one of the world's leading private art collections.The museum has...
(Vienna), the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
, and the National Gallery of Art
National Gallery of Art
The National Gallery of Art and its Sculpture Garden is a national art museum, located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, in Washington, DC...
(Washington D.C.), and are among the public collections holding sculpture by Robert Le Lorrain. He is known to have been a prolific draughtsman: no drawings securely attributed to him survive.