Robert Nanteuil
Encyclopedia
Robert Nanteuil was a French
printmaker in engraving
.
He was born about 1623, or, as other authorities state, in 1630, the son of a merchant of Reims
. Having received an excellent classical education, he studied engraving under his brother-in-law, Nicholas Regnesson; and, his crayon portraits having attracted attention, he was pensioned by Louis XIV
and appointed designer and engraver of the cabinet to that monarch. It was mainly due to his influence that the king granted the edict of 1660, dated from Saint-Jean-de-Luz
, by which engraving was pronounced free and distinct from the mechanical arts, and its practitioners were declared entitled to the privileges of other artists. He died at Paris in 1678.
The plates of Nanteuil, several of them approaching the scale of life, number about three hundred. In his early practice he imitated the technique of his predecessors, working with straight lines, strengthened, but not crossed, in the shadows, in the style of Claude Mellan
, and in other prints cross-hatching like Regnesson, or stippling in the manner of Jean Boulanger
; but he gradually asserted his full individuality, modelling the faces of his portraits with the utmost precision and completeness, and employing various methods of touch for the draperies and other parts of his plates.
Among the finest works of his fully developed period may be named the portraits of Pompone de Bellièvre
, Gilles Ménage
, Jean Loret
, the duc de la Meilleraye and the duchess de Nemours.
A list of his works will be found in Dumesnil's Le Peintre-graveur français, vol. iv.
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...
printmaker in engraving
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
.
He was born about 1623, or, as other authorities state, in 1630, the son of a merchant of Reims
Reims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
. Having received an excellent classical education, he studied engraving under his brother-in-law, Nicholas Regnesson; and, his crayon portraits having attracted attention, he was pensioned by Louis XIV
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...
and appointed designer and engraver of the cabinet to that monarch. It was mainly due to his influence that the king granted the edict of 1660, dated from Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Saint-Jean-de-Luz
Saint-Jean-de-Luz is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France.Saint-Jean-de-Luz is part of the province Basque of Labourd and the Basque Eurocity Bayonne - San Sebastian .-Geography:...
, by which engraving was pronounced free and distinct from the mechanical arts, and its practitioners were declared entitled to the privileges of other artists. He died at Paris in 1678.
The plates of Nanteuil, several of them approaching the scale of life, number about three hundred. In his early practice he imitated the technique of his predecessors, working with straight lines, strengthened, but not crossed, in the shadows, in the style of Claude Mellan
Claude Mellan
Claude Mellan was a French engraver and painter.Mellan was born in Abbeville. Among the leading engravers of his time, he is best known for his numerous portraits as well as for his engraving technique of using parallel lines of varying thickness, rather than the more traditional technique of...
, and in other prints cross-hatching like Regnesson, or stippling in the manner of Jean Boulanger
Jean Boulanger
Jean Boulanger was a French artist active in Italy during the Baroque period. One of his more famous works are the frescoes at the Ducal palace of Sassuolo. His pupils include Tommaso Costa at Modena....
; but he gradually asserted his full individuality, modelling the faces of his portraits with the utmost precision and completeness, and employing various methods of touch for the draperies and other parts of his plates.
Among the finest works of his fully developed period may be named the portraits of Pompone de Bellièvre
Pompone de Bellièvre
Pompone de Bellièvre was a French magistrate, ambassador and statesman, ending his career as first president of the Parlement of Paris, from 1653 to 1657.-Life:...
, Gilles Ménage
Gilles Ménage
Gilles Ménage was a French scholar.He was born at Angers, the son of Guillaume Ménage, king's advocate at Angers, where Gilles was born....
, Jean Loret
Jean Loret
Jean-Marie Loret was a French railway worker and, according to historian Werner Maser's thesis, Adolf Hitler's illegitimate son. The thesis of the "son of Hitler" was very widespread, most of all in the 1970s...
, the duc de la Meilleraye and the duchess de Nemours.
A list of his works will be found in Dumesnil's Le Peintre-graveur français, vol. iv.
External links
- Princeton University. Robert Nanteuil Collection