Jean-baptiste Greuze,

Jean-Baptiste GREUZE (1725-1805) "Boudeuse" Oil on canvas Height: 42 cm - Width: 34 cm Provenance: Château de Villepreux, Bertin de Veaux family Re-coated In a wooden frame and carved and gilded molded stucco From its alive, Greuze had already gained immense popularity in part thanks to his faces of childish expressions. Our painting is one of those portraits so characteristic of his work that he likes from the 1760s. This remarkable work, reflecting the genius of Greuze, combines precision and speed, making this work a composition accomplished in its technique but close to the sketch in its invoice. We observe with admiration these small pictorial touches resulting from a rich palette, affixed to achieve the complexion, and these creamy impastos revealing thick fabrics and drapes. So it is easy for us to imagine Greuze painting with dexterity and "sculpting" this delicate portrait without hesitation. The expression so “Greuzienne” of this little girl testifies to the capacity of the artist to observe, to feel and to grasp the individual character of the children. In his simple, rustic costume, the child already seems to have a very strong character, staring at us, head bowed, without intimidation and with a deep gaze. Biography: Jean-Baptiste Greuze was born on August 21, 1725 in Tournus. Son of an entrepreneur and architect, he was attracted to drawing from his earliest childhood, despite his father's wishes, who intended him to trade. He was supported in his vocation by the Lyon painter Charles Grandon, of whom he was a pupil. Greuze followed his teacher to Paris where he settled in 1750. He became a pupil of Charles-Joseph Natoire at the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture, a teacher with whom he had some trouble. In 1755, his "Father of a family explaining the Bible to his children" was very successful. On February 3, 1759, he married Anne-Gabrielle Babuti, daughter of a bookseller from the Quai des Augustins, François Babuti, whose portrait he exhibited in 1761. The following year, on April 16, in Paris, his wife gave birth to a daughter whom they named Anna-Geneviève. The latter embraced the career of her father that she will support until his death. The popularity of Jean-Baptiste Greuze is confirmed with other genre scenes with a moral aim, such as "L'Accordée de village" (Salon of 1761, Paris, Louvre museum), "La Piété subsidiary" (Salon of 1763, acquired by Catherine II, Saint Petersburg, Hermitage museum), "Le Fils ingrat, Le Fils puni" (sketches in 1765, Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille, paintings in 1778, Louvre museum) or "La Mère beloved "(Salon of 1769, Madrid, private collection). Diderot expresses his enthusiasm. The Revolution of 1789 brought the vogue of the antique and devalued his work, but the nineteenth century perpetuated the tradition of sentimental painting. Greuze asks for a divorce which is pronounced on August 4, 1793. Having invested his fortune in annuities on the Town Hall, the Revolution ruined it entirely. After exhibiting at the Salons of 1800, 1801 and 1804, the Salon in 1808 exhibited "Sainte-Marie l'Egyptienne" three years after her death. He had, among others, for students Marie Renée Geneviève Brossard de Beaulieu, Jeanne-Philiberte Ledoux, Constance Mayer, Pierre Alexandre Wille, Charles-Henri Desfossez, Anna-Geneviève Greuze. Death in his home located rue des Fossés Saint Denis (which ran along Boulevard de Bonne-Nouvelle), Greuze rests in Paris in the Montmartre cemetery. Since 1864, a rue Greuze, road of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, pays homage to the artist. One can, on the other hand, still see his birthplace in Tournus.