Portraits of Artists and the Social Commerce of Friendship in Eighteenth-Century France by Jessica Lynn Fripp a Dissertation
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Portraits of Artists and the Social Commerce of Friendship in Eighteenth-Century France by Jessica Lynn Fripp A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (History of Art) in the University of Michigan 2012 Doctoral Committee: Professor Susan L. Siegfried, Chair Professor Celeste A. Brusati Professor Dena Goodman Professor Patricia Simons © Jessica Lynn Fripp 2012 Acknowledgements Over the last few years I have received assistance from a number of institutions, colleagues, and friends, without whom this dissertation would not have been completed. Funding for this project came from several sources. The International Institute at the University of Michigan provided funding for both pre-dissertation and dissertation research in Paris. A Travel Fellowship from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation allowed me to conduct research in Rome and Sweden. A Bourse Chateaubriand provided funding for an extended stay in Paris and research outside the capital. I am especially grateful to Philippe Bordes, the former Director of Research at the Institut national d’histoire de l’art (INHA), for acting as my sponsor during that crucial year of initial research. This project benefitted greatly from conversations with him as well as his support. The staff and researchers at INHA provided a stimulating environment for dissertating. I thank everyone there for being so welcoming and supportive. A Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship and a Rackham Humanities Candidacy Fellowship provided support for final dissertation writing. I would like to thank the staffs of the Fine Arts Library at the University of Michigan, the Kungliga Bibliothek in Stockholm, the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the Centre de documentation and the Département des arts graphiques at the Musée du Louvre, and the library of the Institut national d’histoire de l’art in Paris. I spent many hours in the collection of the Musée Atger in Montpellier aided by Hélène Lorblanchet. ii In Besançon, Marie-Claire Waille at the Bibliothèque d’étude et de conservation and Ghislaine Courtet at the Musée des beaux-arts et d’archéologie guided me through the enormous amount of material on Pierre-Adrien Pâris. Nadine Lopez at the Musée des beaux-arts of Marseille allowed me to see works in the collection even though the museum was closed for renovation. Martin Olin and Ulf Cederlöf provided access to the drawing collection at the Nationalmuseum, Stockholm when the entire print room staff was on summer holiday. Denis Reynaud provided an introduction to the Académie des sciences, belles lettres et arts de Lyon so that I could consult the discours of Donat Nonnotte. I have benefitted from the assistance and support of many scholars over the years. The late Mary Vidal, who advised my undergraduate thesis at the University of California San Diego, inspired my love of the eighteenth century. At the Clark Art Institute, Mark Ledbury encouraged me to think about the connection between social networking and eighteenth-century portraiture that led me to the topic of this dissertation. He also ushered me into an incredible community of scholars that has supported me throughout my graduate career. Melissa Hyde, Mary Sheriff, and Laura Auricchio have always been available for dinners, conversations, and email exchanges. Elizabeth Mansfield graciously shared portions of her manuscript for The Perfect Foil: François-André Vincent and the Revolution in French Painting (published in 2012 by the University of Minnesota Press) while I was working on chapters 3 and 4. Kenneth Loiselle and Hannah Williams also generously shared their work with me. Esther Bell has been a constant cheerleader throughout the whole project. In Paris, Anne Lafont and Étienne Jollet kindly shared their expertise with me. I also want to thank Amandine Gorse, Nathalie Manceau iii and Nina Struckmeyer, my co-organizers of the Art et Sociabilité au XVIIIe siècle conference, held at INHA in 2011. In Paris, Lauren Cannady, Catherine Clark, Melissa Dean, Elisa Foster, Yuriko Jackall, Brian Jacobson, Tyson Leuchter, Jacob Lewis, Carolyn Purnell, and Jason Vrooman provided excellent company at the library and for extra-curricular excursions. Saphir Grici has been a part of my life in France from my very first stay as an undergraduate. I thank him for his undying positive attitude and friendship over years. Ellen McBreen and the staff of Paris Muse gave me plenty of good excuses to spend countess hours in the galleries of the Louvre. Katie Hornstein and Viktor Witkowski introduced me to some of my favorite restaurants and to the formidable Myszka Hornstein-Witkowski. My most heartfelt thanks go to Christopher Leichtnam who has been dinner companion, sounding board, translator, and editor over the last three years. At the University of Michigan, I was fortunate to have been part of an excellent community of scholars and graduate students. I would like to thank Matt Biro, Joshua Cole, Michèle Hannoosh, Megan Holmes, Howard Lay, Alex Potts, Elizabeth Sears, and Rebecca Zurier for their encouragement. The friendship of my fellow graduate students, including Katie Hartsough Brion, Christina Chang, Bridget Gilman, Philip Guilbeau, Monique Johnson, Andrew Ross, Melanie Sympson, Kathy Zarur, and Beatriz Zengotitabengoa, was invaluable. Pamela Stewart, Peter Dicola, Kate Brucher, and Arlo made me immediately feel at home when I first arrived in Ann Arbor. Katie Hornstein has been my dissertation big sister, and I thank her for her advice and help over the years. I would also like to thank Kate Anderson and Ross O’Connell, Matt Largo, Sarah and iv Ryan Muldoon, Matthew and Katy Pennington, and Devon Persing for countless entertaining conversations at ABC and elsewhere. My greatest thanks go to my dissertation committee. Dena Goodman sparked my interest in eighteenth-century sociability and Madame Geoffrin during an independent study my first year at Michigan. My work has benefitted enormously from her expertise in the intellectual history of the Enlightenment and her enthusiasm for interdisciplinarity. The advice of Celeste Brusati was crucial to the formation of this project in its early stages. I thank her for all her guidance and unfailing support. Patricia Simons was always available for questions and conversations, whether over email or during her trips to Paris over the years. I am tremendously indebted to my adviser, Susan Siegfried. Her astute ability to weave together visual material, history, and theory has been and will continue to be a model for my own work. Her close reading (and re-reading) of this dissertation with an unwavering critical eye and her generosity with her time and energy have been invaluable to the success of this project. My cat, M. Colbert, has been my constant writing companion. Casey Schneider- Mizell entered my life right when I embarked on this project and he has been with me every step of the way, even when oceans, countries, or continents separated us. Thank you for your love and support through it all. Finally, I would be nowhere without the love and encouragement of my family: Lyn, Raymond, Nicolette, Matt, Heather, Connor, Ryan, and Brooklyn. I dedicate this dissertation to them. v Table of Contents Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................... ii List of Tables .................................................................................................................. viii List of Figures................................................................................................................... ix Abstract......................................................................................................................... xviii Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................1 Chapter Summary ..............................................................................................................22 Chapter 2: Friendship at the Salon ................................................................................26 Introduction............................................................................................................26 Charles-Nicolas Cochin: From salon to Salon ......................................................37 Maurice Quentin de La Tour: Using Your Famous Friends .................................47 Celebrity Undressed ..............................................................................................63 Adélaïde Labille-Guiard: Problematic Appropriations .........................................68 Conclusion.............................................................................................................74 Chapter 3: Friendship and Fantasy: François-André Vincent’s Portrait de Trois Hommes.............................................................................................................................78 Introduction............................................................................................................78 The Triple Portrait .................................................................................................82 Friendship and Fantasy..........................................................................................89 Friends and Professionals......................................................................................95 Transformations...................................................................................................102