Two Male Studies by Jacques-Augustin-Catherine Pajou for the 1785 and 1787 Concours du Torse at the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture

Daniel Prytz Curator, 18th-Century Painting, Drawings and Prints

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Stockholm Volume 26:2 Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, Two Male Studies by Jacques-Augustin-Catherine © Tate/CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0 (Unported)/ https:// is published with generous support from the Pajou for the 1785 and 1787 Concours du Torse at www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/turner-venice-the- Friends of the Nationalmuseum. the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture campanile-of-san-marco-st-marks-and-the-pa- © Beaux-Arts de , Dist. RMN-Grand Palais/ lazzo-ducale-doges-palace-late-d15258, (accessed Nationalmuseum collaborates with Svenska image Beaux-arts de Paris (Figs. 3–4, p. 21) 2021-01-28) (Fig. 12, p, 67) Dagbladet, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, © CC-BY Brian McNeil/Wikimedia Commons Grand Hôtel Stockholm, The Wineagency and Joseph Ducreux’s Self-Portraiture – Capturing (Fig. 13, p. 67) the Friends of the Nationalmuseum. Emotions in the Wake of Enlightenment and © The National Gallery, London/CC-BY-NC-ND Revolution (Fig. 14, p. 68) Cover Illustration © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée du )/ Model and cut by Pär Engsheden (b. 1967), sewn Jean-Gilles Berizzi (Fig. 2, p. 24) Graphic Design by Margareta Webrink, (b. 1956), Gown, 2018. BIGG Silk taffeta. Two parts, gown and cape, 154 x 130 x Landscape Paintings by Jean-Joseph-Xavier 130 cm (h x w x d) strapless gown, 154 x 130 x 165 Bidauld and Achille-Etna Michallon Layout cm (h x w x d) cape. Gift of Sara and Leo Danius. © Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY/ Agneta Bervokk Nationalmuseum, NMK 197/2019. Public Domain (Fig. 2, p. 28) Translation and Language Editing Publisher Five Perspectives on Contemporary Craft in Sweden Clare Barnes, Wendy Davies, Bianca Marsden-Day Susanna Pettersson, Director General © Daniel Milton (Fig. 1, p. 53) and Martin Naylor © Tomas Björkdal (Fig. 5, p. 56) Editors Publishing Ludvig Florén, Magnus Olausson and Martin Olin Sara Danius’s Nobel Gowns Ludvig Florén, Magnus Olausson, and Martin © Carl Bengtsson/Skarp Agent (Figs. 1–4, 57 Olin (Editors) and Ingrid Lindell (Publications Editorial Committee and 59) Manager) Ludvig Florén, Carina Fryklund, Eva-Lena Karlsson, Ingrid Lindell, Magnus Olausson, The Tessin Lecture: Inventing the Landscape. The Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum is published Martin Olin, Daniel Prytz and Cilla Robach Origin of Plein Air Painting in Italy in the Early twice a year and contains articles on the history 19th Century and theory of art relating to the collections of the Photographers © bpk/Hamburger Kunsthalle/Elke Walford Nationalmuseum. Nationalmuseum Photographic Studio/ (Fig. 1, p. 61) Linn Ahlgren, Erik Cornelius, Anna Danielsson, © bpk/Nationalgalerie, SMB/Jörg P. Anders Nationalmuseum Viktor Fordell and Cecilia Heisser (Fig. 2, p. 62) Box 16176 © bpk (Fig. 3, p. 62) SE–103 24 Stockholm, Sweden Picture Editors © Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH/ www.nationalmuseum.se Rikard Nordström and Marina Strouzer-Rodov Public Domain (Fig. 4, p. 63) © Christie’s Images/Bridgeman Images © Nationalmuseum, the authors and the owners of Photo Credits (Fig. 5, p. 63) the reproduced works Cover Illustration © Landesmuseum Hannover/ARTOTHEK © Carl Bengtsson/Skarp Agent (Fig. 6, p. 64) ISSN 2001-9238 © Musée Granet, Ville d’Aix-en-Provence/ Ber- A New Cabinet Piece by Frans Francken II nard Terlay (Fig. 8, p. 65) © Courtesy of the Seville Cathedral Chapter/ © The Ruskin Museum, Coniston (Fig. 9, p. 65) Daniel Salvador Almeida (Fig. 3, p. 16) © Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen/Public © Kunstmuseum, Basel/Public domain Domain (Fig. 10, p. 66) (Fig. 7, p. 18) © Josse/Leemage via Getty images (Fig. 11, p. 66)

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volume 26:2, 2019 ACQUISITIONS/TWO MALE STUDIES BY JACQUES-AUGUSTIN-CATHERINE PAJOU

Two Male Studies by Jacques-Augustin-Catherine Pajou for the 1785 and 1787 Concours du Torse at the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture

Daniel Prytz Curator, 18th-Century Painting, Drawings and Prints

The neoclassical painter Jacques- Augustin-Catherine Pajou (1766–1828) has for a long time stood in the shadow of his father, the celebrated royal sculptor Augustin Pajou (1730–1809). Pajou fils became a student at the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in 1784, aiming to become a history painter. The two male studies considered here were entered in one of the competitions arranged by the Academy, the Concours d’une demi-figure peinte d’après nature (also referred to as the Concours du torse peinte (Painted Torso Competition), or simply the Concourse du torse). For several years Pajou competed for the Academy’s prestigious , a studentship at the École Français in Rome which had become almost a prerequisite if you were to have a chance of carving your- self a place as a history painter in at that time.1 Antiquity and the work of old masters were emphasised in the teaching of the Academy, and the preliminary competitions associated with the Prix de Rome demonstrate the importance that was attached to technical skill in the tra- dition of these artistic models. Technical specialisation was not only an advantage in the repertoire of the artist’s skills, but something that was actively pursued. Just like the older Concours de tête d’expression (Expressive Head Competition), the Concours du torse was one of these pre- liminary competitions. The former was founded in 1759 by the connoisseur and Fig. 1 Jacques Augustin Cathérine Pajou (1766–1828), Nude Male Study, Entry in the Concours du torse peinte, collector Comte de Caylus (1692–1765), 1785. Oil on canvas, 100 x 82 cm. Purchase: Hedda och N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationalmuseum, NM 7487.

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and the latter in 1784 by the prominent pastellist and portrait painter Maurice Quentin de La Tour (1704–1788), who at the time held the titles “Peintre ordinai- re du Roy et Conseiller de l’Académie”.2 Thus, both competitions were initiated by men who, in different capacities, were central in the development of French art in the middle of the 18th century, perhaps especially concerning technique.3 The competitions were directly associated with their founders, even to the extent that they were also referred to as the Prix de M. le Comte de Caylus and the Prix de M. De la Tour, and in some respects the latter competition was created in response, even as an alternative, to the former.4 Ironically perhaps, La Tour was of course particularly famous for his expressive head studies and portraits, and the purpose of his competi- tion was revealingly described in its rules: “On choisira, autant qu’il sera possible, un modèle dont la tête ait du caractère et soit en quelque manière propre à entrer dans un tableau d’histoire”.5 The character and mien of the head and face were thus as important as the rendering of the actual torso. In addition, the description “pro- pre à entrer dans un tableau d’histoire” of course reveals the emphasis put on the skills required in history painting and how this could help the Academy to ascertain the appropriateness of also awarding the winner of the competition the Prix de Rome at a later stage. The minutes of the Academy show what care went into the design of the competition and, in general, Fig. 2 Jacques Augustin Cathérine Pajou (1766–1828), Nude Male Study, Entry in the Concours du torse the rules were quite detailed. It was, for peinte, 1787. Oil on canvas, 100 x 82 cm. Purchase: Hedda och N. D. Qvist Fund. Nationlamuseum, NM 7488. example, also decided that participants had only one week to complete their work, and that if you had previously won one of the Grands Prix or a première médaille, you were not eligible to take part in this new competition, since it was taken for granted that you would in that case already possess greater skills than those who had not yet received such honours.6 Case studies of La Tour’s competition are quite interesting and can potentially offer us clues to, and in some instances

Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Volume 26:2, 2019 20 ACQUISITIONS/TWO MALE STUDIES BY JACQUES-AUGUSTIN-CATHERINE PAJOU clear evidence of, the aesthetic policies of the Academy and how they helped to shape artistic taste in France at the time. Reviewing the competition in the years that Pajou participated is to some extent like looking through a who’s who of the generation of neoclassical artists who would come to dominate French art in the late 18th and early 19th centuries – among other competitors, we find for example Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson (1767–1824), Guillaume Guillon-Lethière (1760–1832) and François-Xavier Fabre (1766–1837).7 The first of the two male studies conside- red here was entered in the second year of La Tour’s competition, which was of course also Pajou’s second year at the Academy (Fig. 1).8 Two years later Pajou entered the competition anew and this time won a spe- Fig. 3 Guillaume Guillon-Lethière (1760–1832), Fig. 4 François-Xavier Fabre (1766–1837), Concours du torse peinte (Painted Torso Concours du torse peinte (Painted Torso cial prize, a “médaille d’encouragement” Competition), Winning Entry, Torso 3, 1785. Competition), Winning Entry, Torso 5, 1787. 9 (Fig. 2). The two works produced two Oil on canvas, 100 x 81 cm. Les Beaux-Arts de Oil on canvas, 100 x 81.7. Les Beaux-Arts de years apart are quite similar and reflect Paris, Paris. Paris, Paris. the consistency of the competition, which was undoubtedly a result of the detailed regulations. As we can see, even the model used for the paintings was the same during these years. In a grand, almost baroque style, suited to the competition’s purpose me Guillon-Lethière (Fig. 3) and Fabre’s, especially considering the latter as a preparation for history painting, Pajou François-Xavier Fabre (Fig. 4), are two artists’ careful classicist rendering of expertly depicts the young man dramati- preserved in the collections of the École the model’s form and the more cautious cally draped in red and leaning on a rock. des Beaux-Arts.11 This enables us to contrast between figure and background His handling of light and colour brings make some interesting comparisons in which they achieve. It is perhaps not sur- to mind the work of earlier chiaroscuro general between the works of the two prising, then, that the Academy members masters such as the Caravaggisti, and in years, as well as to more closely determine preferred the more academic work of the sculptural way he renders the form of the particular qualities of Pajou’s compe- Guillon-Lethière and Fabre, which must the male body one can perhaps detect the ting works. The specific pose of the model be considered more in line with the influence of his father. The poses of the in 1787 allowed the participating artists neoclassical taste of the time. model in the two paintings are different, more scope than in 1785 to demonstrate However, given that the Academy but the basic components are the same. their skill in rendering, for example, awarded Pajou a special prize in 1787, its The goal of ascertaining the artist’s ability the details of the hands and the ripple members obviously could not deny the to capture the facial expression in relation of musculature of the arms. In the 1787 strength and immediacy of his work, qual- to both the torso and details such as the paintings there is also more of an effort to ities most clearly evident in his rendering hands is obvious. In fact, in the competi- fill the background with depth than before, of the expression of the model’s face, which tion rules it was stated that both hands of although this is much more pronounced is much more detailed and vibrant than in the model were to be depicted in the com- in Pajou’s work than in Fabre’s. Pajou puts Fabre’s work. In this, Pajou’s work seems position. Similarly, there was an express great emphasis on the contrast between closer in spirit, not only to that of old directive concerning the use of light and the white of the model’s skin and the deep masters of the preceding century, but also, shadow.10 black shadows of the background. In com- pointing forward, to the works of artists For both the 1785 and the 1787 compe- parison, his works seem to have a bolder such as Théodore Géricault (1791–1824), as tition, the entries of the winners, Guillau- quality than both Guillon-Lethière’s and Alice Thomine-Berrada has pointed out.12

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It is almost as if Pajou, beforehand and in perhaps part of the reason why Pajou’s et de Sculpture, 1780–1788, pp. 249, 329–330. anticipation, is trying to capture the spirit relationship to the Academy turned sour 8. Ibid. 9. Ibid. of the art that he would have been studying and he later became a revolutionary, 10. Ibid., pp. 209–210. had he won the Prix de Rome. Perhaps it is joining what was known as the Compagnie 11. For Fabre’s work, see Schwartz 2014, Hassan significant here how the Academy, stating des arts.15 2014, and Laure Pellicer and Michel Hilaire, the purpose of the special prize, described Although Pajou did go on to produce François-Xavier Fabre, 1766–1837: De Florence à it as one awarded for the artist’s dessin, in history paintings, he never became promi- Montpellier, Paris 2008, p. 103, cat. no. 7. 12. I especially wish to thank Alice Thomine- this case referring to the underdrawing nent in that field in the same way as Giro- Berrada at the École des Beaux-Arts for providing of his work, which could possibly also be det or Fabre, for instance. Instead, he pri- information about the Concours du torse and the viewed as stressing to an even greater marily made his mark as a portrait painter. works of Guillaume Guillon-Lethière and François- extent the importance of the technical His proper place in French neoclassicist Xavier Fabre which won the competition in 1785 skill demanded of these would-be history art has been continuously rehabilitated and 1787. 13. This “medal of encouragement” was also painters.13 over the last 25 years, for example through referred to as une première Médaille de dessin. Apart from the quality of his work, the publication of a catalogue raisonné of Procès-verbaux de l’Académie Royale de Peinture et the award of the special prize may also his work in 1997 and the Louvre’s acquisi- de Sculpture, 1780–1788, pp. 329–330. reflect an ambivalent relationship between tion in 2014 of a great example of Pajou’s 14. Procès-verbaux de l’Académie Royale de Peinture the Academy and Pajou and, perhaps to portraiture, Portrait of the Artist’s Family et de Sculpture, Vol. X, 1789–1793, p. 72. 15. Philippe Nusbaumer, Jacques Augustin some extent, be indicative of what path from 1802.16 Through the identification Catherine Pajou (1766–1828), peintre d’histoire et de his future career would take. One can and contextualisation of the two male portrait, Le Pecq-sur-Seine 1997, pp. 2–5. only speculate on whether the Academy’s studies purchased by the Nationalmuseum 16. Nusbaumer 1997, pp. 60–63, cat. no. 50, figs. 5–7. initial reluctance to award Pajou the Prix as entries in the art-historically important Jacques-Augustin-Catherine Pajou, Portrait de la de M. De la Tour, despite the high quality Concours du torse, Jacques-Augustin- famille de l’artiste (1802), Louvre; see Didier Ryk- ner, “Un tableau de Pajou fils acquis par le Louvre”, of his entries in the competitions of both Catherine Pajou’s place and position in late in La Tribune de l’Art, 27 March 2014, https:// 1785 and 1787, had something to do with 18th-century French painting, regardless www.latribunedelart.com/un-tableau-de-pajou- his father being a member of the Academy of his familial status as fils in the shadow fils-acquis-par-le-louvre, (accessed 7 December at the time. While common in the private of the great royal sculptor, are further 2020). artists’ studios of the time, this familial affirmed. relationship within a formal institution Notes: was quite unusual. It must, in some 1. Emmanuel Schwartz, Gods and Heroes: Master- instances at least, have created problems, pieces from the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 2014. the Academy perhaps not wishing, for ex- See also Sarah Hassan, “From Paris, with Mastery”, in Fine Art Connoisseur, November/December ample, to be accused of any overt nepotism 2014, https://sarahmhassanwrites.files.wordpress. that could possibly be exposed through the com/2015/09/frompariswithmastery.pdf, (accessed competitions. In this respect, it is signifi- 7 December 2020). cant that, while Pajou did go on to win the 2. Procès-verbaux de l’Académie Royale de Peinture Prix de M. De la Tour a few years later, he et de Sculpture 1648–1793, Vol. IX, 1780–1788, pp. 209–210. still failed to secure the Prix de Rome.14 3. Concerning the Comte de Caylus and La Tour, The stature of the work of Pajou’s see for example Jennifer E. Jones, A Discourse father meant that his son was always on Drawings: Amateurs & Connoisseurs and the referred to as Pajou fils, a name that even Graphic Arts in Early Eighteenth-Century Paris, he himself used when he signed his works, Columbia University, New York 2015. Christine Debrie, Maurice Quentin de La Tour: “Peintre de including the two competition entries. portraits au pastel”, 1704–1788 (exh. cat.), Musée Here then, the fact that his father was Antoine Lécuyer de Saint-Quentin, Thonon- such a central figure in the arts of France les-Bains, Haute-Savoie 1991. Christine Debrie at the time could perhaps be viewed as and Xavier Salmon, Maurice-Quentin de La Tour: something of a hindrance to the advance- Prince des pastellistes, Paris 2008. Procès-verbaux de l’Académie Royale de Peinture ment of Pajou fils’s career as a history 4. et de Sculpture, 1780–1788, pp. 209–210. painter. This, together with the artist’s 5. Ibid. renowned antagonistic disposition, 6. Ibid. described by Girodet amongst others, was 7. Procès-verbaux de l’Académie Royale de Peinture

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