Joseph Ducreux
| Joseph Ducreux | |
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Portrait de l'artiste sous les traits d'un moqueur, Self-portrait, ca. 1793
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| Born |
Joseph Ducreux 26 June 1735 Nancy, France |
| Died | 24 July 1802 (aged 67) road from Paris to Saint-Denis, France |
| Nationality | Lorraine then French |
| Known for | Portrait painting |
| Awards | premier peintre de la reine |
Joseph, Baron Ducreux (26 June 1735 – 24 July 1802) was a French noble, portrait painter, pastelist, miniaturist, and engraver, who was a successful portraitist at the court of Louis XVI of France, and resumed his career after the French Revolution. He was made a baron and premier peintre de la reine (First Painter to the Queen), and drew the last portrait ever made of Louis XVI before the king’s execution. His less formal portraits reflect his fascination with physiognomy and show an interest in expanding the range of facial expressions beyond those of official portraiture.
Born in Nancy, France, Ducreux may have trained with his father, who was also a painter. When Ducreux went to Paris in 1760, he trained as the only student of the pastelist Maurice Quentin de La Tour, who specialized in portraiture. Jean-Baptiste Greuze was an important influence on Ducreux's oil technique.
In 1769, Ducreux was sent to Vienna in order to paint a miniature of Marie Antoinette (shown left) before she left the city in 1770 and married Louis XVI of France. Ducreux was made a baron and premier peintre de la reine (First Painter to the Queen) in rewards for his services. Ducreux was given this appointment by Marie-Antoinette even though he was not a member of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture, which had been founded in 1648. The academy was strictly hierarchical and the posts of first painter, ordinary painter and inspector or inspector general of royal factories were customarily reserved for members of the academy.
At the outbreak of the French Revolution, Ducreux traveled to London. There he drew the last portrait ever made of Louis XVI before the king's execution.
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