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Pierre-Narcisse, baron Guérin | |
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| Born | (1774-03-13)13 March 1774 |
| Died | 6 July 1833(1833-07-06) (aged 59) |
| Known for | Painting |
| Notable work | Jeune fille en buste |
Pierre-Narcisse, baron Guérin (13 March 1774 – 6 July 1833) was aFrench painter, born inParis.
A pupil ofJean-Baptiste Regnault, he carried off one of the threegrands prix offered in 1796, in consequence of the competition not having taken place since 1793. In 1799, his paintingThe Return of Marcus Sextus (Louvre) was exhibited at the Salon and excited wild enthusiasm. Part of this was due to the subject – a victim ofSulla's proscription returning toRome to find his wife dead and his house in mourning – in which an allusion was found to the turmoil of the French Revolution.
Guérin on this occasion was publicly crowned by the president of the institute, and went to Rome to study underJoseph-Benoît Suvée. In 1800, unable to remain in Rome on account of his health, he went toNaples, where he paintedThe Shepherds in the Tomb of Amyntas. In 1802 Guérin producedPhaedra andHippolytus (Louvre); in 1810, after his return to Paris, he again achieved a great success withAndromache and Pyrrhus (Louvre); and in the same year also exhibitedAurora and Cephalus (Pushkin Museum) andBonaparte and the Rebels of Cairo (Versailles). These paintings suited the popular taste of theFirst Empire, being highly melodramatic and pompously dignified.
The Restoration brought to Guérin fresh honours; he had received from the first consul in 1803 the cross of theLegion of Honour, and in 1815Louis XVIII named him to theAcadémie des Beaux-Arts. His style changed to accord with popular taste. InAeneas Relating toDido the Disasters ofTroy (Louvre), Guérin adopted a more sensuous, picturesque style.
Guérin was commissioned to paint for the Madeleine a scene from the history of St Louis, but his health prevented him from accomplishing what he had begun, and in 1822 he accepted the post of director of theFrench Academy in Rome, which in 1816 he had refused. On returning to Paris in 1828, Guérin, who had previously been madechevalier of the order of St. Michel, was ennobled. He now attempted to completePyrrhus and Priam, a work which he had begun atRome, but in vain; his health had finally broken down, and in the hope of improvement he returned to Italy withHorace Vernet. Shortly after his arrival at Rome Baron Guérin died, on 6 July 1833, and was buried in the church ofLa Trinité de Monti by the side ofClaude Lorrain.
A heroic portrait by Guerin hangs in theBasilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary inBaltimore. An 1821 gift of KingLouis XVIII, it depicts the episode of theDescent from the Cross.
Many artists studied with Guérin, among themEugène Delacroix,Théodore Géricault,Ary andHendrik Scheffer.[1]
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![Portrait of Henri de la Rochejaquelein (1816) Musée d'Art et d'Histoire de Cholet [fr]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aHenri-de-la-rochejacquelein-1.jpg)
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Guérin, Pierre Narcisse, Baron".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Media related toPierre-Narcisse Guérin at Wikimedia Commons
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