|
|
Tapestry in the Baroque: Threads of Splendor
|
|
 
|
|
The Audience with Cardinal Chigi (detail)
From a fourteen-piece set of the History of the King
Design by Charles Le Brun, cartoon by Antoine Mathieu the Elder, 1664
Cartoon for the border attributed to Jean Lemoyne le Lorrain, 1665
Woven in the workshop of Jean Lefebvre at the Manufacture Royale des Gobelins, Paris, 1665–72
Wool, silk, and silver and gilt-metal wrapped thread; 16 ft. 9 in. x 23 ft. 5 1/2 in. (510 x 715 cm)
Mobilier National, Paris (GMTT 95/1), deposited at the Musée du Louvre, Paris
See an image of the entire panel.
|
|
|
While Charles Le Brun's initial designs for the Gobelins manufactory celebrated Louis XIV by allegorical means (the Elements and the Seasons) and classical comparisons (the Story of Alexander), the propagandistic intent of the production became explicit in the most ambitious of these early series, the History of the King. Depicting elaborate scenes celebrating the king's military prowess and bravery, his diplomatic skills, and his vision as a patron of the arts, the series was also the most ambitious of those undertaken at Gobelins during its peak years of production. Le Brun worked with a team of artists, chief of whom was Adam-François van der Meulen (1634–90), who undertook detailed studies of the topography of many of the battlefields and settings that were incorporated into the final designs. With their vivid portrayals of Louis XIV and members of his court, and the detailed rendering of settings, costumes, and interiors, these tapestries provide an extraordinary glimpse of the court of the Sun King.
|
|
|
Back to main page for this exhibition
Back to images from this exhibition
