Lot Essay
EUSTACHE LE SUEUR KNOWN AS 'LE RAPHAEL FRANçAIS', NEVER TRAVELLED TO ITALY, AND YET HIS WORK IS IMBUED WITH SUCH A PERVASIVE TONE OF ITALIAN CLASSICISM THAT HE WAS REGARDED WELL INTO THE 19TH CENTURY AS ONE OF THE FATHERS OF FRENCH CLASSICAL ART, ALONG WITH POUSSIN AND LE BRUN. THE PRESENT DRAWING EXEMPLIFIES THE ARTIST'S METHOD OF WORKING FROM AN ITALIAN MODEL; IN THIS CASE A FRESCO BY DOMENICHINO IN THE BANDINI CHAPEL IN SAN SILVESTRO AL QUIRINALE, IN ROME, ALBEIT TRANSFORMED INTO AN EVEN MORE CLASSICAL COMPOSITION.
THE THEME OF DAVID DANCING BEFORE THE ARK IS AN ICONOGRAPHICALLY RARE ONE. THE SIMILARITY BETWEEN DOMENICHINO'S COMPOSITION AND THE PRESENT SHEET IS STRIKING: A SIMILAR PROCESSION FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, WITH KING DAVID IN PROFILE HOLDING THE HARP IN THE SAME WAY AND DANCING WITH ONE LEG RAISED. THE CLUMP OF TREES SEEN JUST BEHIND THE ARK AND DANCERS BLOWING ANTIQUE HORNS ALSO RECALL DOMENICHINO'S PROTOTYPE. HOWEVER DOMENICHINO'S FRESCO IS A PENDENTIVE ROUNDEL RATHER THAN AN OVAL. HOW LE SUEUR KNEW OF THIS FRESCO IS FAR FROM CLEAR. THE BANDINI CHAPEL FRESCOES WERE NOT AMONG THE FEW WORKS BY THE ARTIST ENGRAVED BY RéMY VUIBERT, ONE OF VOUET'S CLOSEST ASSOCIATES. CONTEMPORARY COPIES MENTIONED IN THE JEAN DE JULIENNE, SALE OF 1767 AS THE MODELLI FOR THE FRESCOES SUGGEST THAT COPIES OF THE COMPOSITION MAY HAVE BEEN KNOWN IN FRANCE DURING LE SUEUR'S LIFETIME.
HOWEVER, THE LINK BETWEEN LE SUEUR'S AND DOMENICHINO'S COMPOSITIONS MAY LIE IN THE ATTRIBUTION OF A TERRACOTTA RELIEF IN THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON, FORMERLY ATTRIBUTED TO ALGARDI BY SIR JOHN POPE HENNESSY BUT REGARDED BY JENNIFER MONTAGU AS A LATER WORK FROM THE CIRCLE OF MELCHIORRE LAFFA. THIS OVAL RELIEF SHOWS A COMPOSITION EVEN CLOSER TO LE SUEUR'S DRAWING. TWO FIGURES, ONE BLOWING A HORN, THE OTHER DANCING WITH ARMS UPRAISED FACE DAVID PLAYING THE HARP. IN LE SUEUR'S DRAWING THESE FIGURES SEEMS ALMOST ADDED ONTO THE COMPOSITION, THE INSCRIBED OVAL HAVING BEEN EXTNEDED TO FIT THEM IN.
ACCORDING TO RICHARD SPEAR, THE FRESCOES BY DOMENICHINO WERE PAINTED AROUND 1627-28 JUST AFTER VOUET BUT MOST SIGNIFICANTLY SARRAZIN RETURNED TO FRANCE. THE BANDINI CHAPEL WAS, IN FACT, THE FIRST COMMISSION FOR WHICH DOMENICHINO COULD NOT ASK SARRAZIN TO COLLABORATE WITH HIM. INSTEAD DOMENICHINO RECOMMENDED THE YOUNG ALGARDI WHOSE FIRST MAJOR COMMISSION IT WAS. COULD IT BE THEREFORE, THROUGH THE CIRCLE OF VOUET AND THE FRENCH SCULPTORS IN ROME THAT KNOWLEDGE OF THE FRESCO REACHED LE SUEUR? LE SUEUR ENTERED VOUET'S STUDIO IN THE MID 1630'S, AND REMAINED THERE UNTIL THE MID 1640'S. THE ARTIST WOULD HAVE BEEN PARTICULARLY WELL PLACED TO HAVE KNOWN OF DOMENICHINO'S WORK AND ITS DEVELOPMENT IN ITALY SHORTLY AFTER.
ONE CAN DATE THE PRESENT DRAWING STYLISTICALLY FROM THE LATER PERIOD OF THE ARTIST'S SHORT CAREER. LE SUEUR TRANSFORMED DOMENICHINO'S COMPOSITION BY PLACING THE ARK IN THE CENTER AND BY FLANKING IT WITH GROUPS OF TRUMPETERS AND DANCERS. THE MOVEMENT IS EXPRESSED MORE BY THE ELEGANT FOLDS OF THE DRAPERIES THAN BY FIGURES IN UNBALANCED POSES. THE GREY WASH CREATES STRONG CONTRASTS OF LIGHT: THE ARK MOVES FROM THE SHADOWS OF A CLUMP OF TREES INTO THE LIGHT. IN FRONT OF DAVID STANDS THE SKETCHED FIGURE OF A CHILD DANCING, UNTOUCHED BY ANY WASH AND WITH VIGOROUS PENTIMENTI, WHICH ARE CHARACTERISTIC OF THE ARTIST'S LATE DRAWINGS.
THE SUBJECT OF DAVID DANCING IN FRONT OF THE ARK WOULD HAVE NATURALLY APPEALED TO LE SUEUR. SCENES FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT OFFERED ARTISTS THE OPPORTUNITY TO PAINT CYCLES FOR, ALTHOUGH RELIGIOUS, THEY WERE REGARDED AS HISTORICAL SUBJECTS APPROPRIATE FOR DOMESTIC SETTINGS. SUCH CYCLES WERE PARTICULARLY POPULAR AMONG MEMBERS OF THE PARLIAMENT AND THE HAUTE BOURGEOISIE. LE SUEUR PAINTED SEVERAL SUCH CYCLES, ONE OF MOSES, AND ANOTHER OF TOBIAS. HE MAY ALSO HAVE BEEN AWARE OF THE ICONOGRAPHIC SIGNIFICANCE OF THE SUBJECT. KING DAVID WAS FREQUENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH ACADEMIES FOR, LIKE APOLLO, HE WAS REGARDED AS A SYMBOL OF HARMONY AND POETRY. DAVID IS LARGELY ABSENT FROM THE ICONOGRAPHY OF THE SCHOOL OF FONTAINEBLEAU, BUT APPEARS IN A DRAWING OF THE PROCESSION OF KING HENRI III ON THE OCCAISION ON THE CREATION OF THE ORDER OF SAINT'ESPRIT IN 1579. IN 1612 AN ACADEMY OF THE COMPANIONS OF KING DAVID WAS CREATED IN PARIS. LE SUEUR, WHO WAS A MEMBER OF THE SOPHISTICATED CIRCLE OF ANNE DE CHAMBRE, WOULD HAVE BEEN AWARE OF SUCH CONNOTATIONS. ABRAHAM DE BOSSE, ONE OF LE SUEUR'S CLOSEST FRIENDS ENGRAVED A PRINT OF THIS SUBJECT
THE THEME OF DAVID DANCING BEFORE THE ARK IS AN ICONOGRAPHICALLY RARE ONE. THE SIMILARITY BETWEEN DOMENICHINO'S COMPOSITION AND THE PRESENT SHEET IS STRIKING: A SIMILAR PROCESSION FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, WITH KING DAVID IN PROFILE HOLDING THE HARP IN THE SAME WAY AND DANCING WITH ONE LEG RAISED. THE CLUMP OF TREES SEEN JUST BEHIND THE ARK AND DANCERS BLOWING ANTIQUE HORNS ALSO RECALL DOMENICHINO'S PROTOTYPE. HOWEVER DOMENICHINO'S FRESCO IS A PENDENTIVE ROUNDEL RATHER THAN AN OVAL. HOW LE SUEUR KNEW OF THIS FRESCO IS FAR FROM CLEAR. THE BANDINI CHAPEL FRESCOES WERE NOT AMONG THE FEW WORKS BY THE ARTIST ENGRAVED BY RéMY VUIBERT, ONE OF VOUET'S CLOSEST ASSOCIATES. CONTEMPORARY COPIES MENTIONED IN THE JEAN DE JULIENNE, SALE OF 1767 AS THE MODELLI FOR THE FRESCOES SUGGEST THAT COPIES OF THE COMPOSITION MAY HAVE BEEN KNOWN IN FRANCE DURING LE SUEUR'S LIFETIME.
HOWEVER, THE LINK BETWEEN LE SUEUR'S AND DOMENICHINO'S COMPOSITIONS MAY LIE IN THE ATTRIBUTION OF A TERRACOTTA RELIEF IN THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON, FORMERLY ATTRIBUTED TO ALGARDI BY SIR JOHN POPE HENNESSY BUT REGARDED BY JENNIFER MONTAGU AS A LATER WORK FROM THE CIRCLE OF MELCHIORRE LAFFA. THIS OVAL RELIEF SHOWS A COMPOSITION EVEN CLOSER TO LE SUEUR'S DRAWING. TWO FIGURES, ONE BLOWING A HORN, THE OTHER DANCING WITH ARMS UPRAISED FACE DAVID PLAYING THE HARP. IN LE SUEUR'S DRAWING THESE FIGURES SEEMS ALMOST ADDED ONTO THE COMPOSITION, THE INSCRIBED OVAL HAVING BEEN EXTNEDED TO FIT THEM IN.
ACCORDING TO RICHARD SPEAR, THE FRESCOES BY DOMENICHINO WERE PAINTED AROUND 1627-28 JUST AFTER VOUET BUT MOST SIGNIFICANTLY SARRAZIN RETURNED TO FRANCE. THE BANDINI CHAPEL WAS, IN FACT, THE FIRST COMMISSION FOR WHICH DOMENICHINO COULD NOT ASK SARRAZIN TO COLLABORATE WITH HIM. INSTEAD DOMENICHINO RECOMMENDED THE YOUNG ALGARDI WHOSE FIRST MAJOR COMMISSION IT WAS. COULD IT BE THEREFORE, THROUGH THE CIRCLE OF VOUET AND THE FRENCH SCULPTORS IN ROME THAT KNOWLEDGE OF THE FRESCO REACHED LE SUEUR? LE SUEUR ENTERED VOUET'S STUDIO IN THE MID 1630'S, AND REMAINED THERE UNTIL THE MID 1640'S. THE ARTIST WOULD HAVE BEEN PARTICULARLY WELL PLACED TO HAVE KNOWN OF DOMENICHINO'S WORK AND ITS DEVELOPMENT IN ITALY SHORTLY AFTER.
ONE CAN DATE THE PRESENT DRAWING STYLISTICALLY FROM THE LATER PERIOD OF THE ARTIST'S SHORT CAREER. LE SUEUR TRANSFORMED DOMENICHINO'S COMPOSITION BY PLACING THE ARK IN THE CENTER AND BY FLANKING IT WITH GROUPS OF TRUMPETERS AND DANCERS. THE MOVEMENT IS EXPRESSED MORE BY THE ELEGANT FOLDS OF THE DRAPERIES THAN BY FIGURES IN UNBALANCED POSES. THE GREY WASH CREATES STRONG CONTRASTS OF LIGHT: THE ARK MOVES FROM THE SHADOWS OF A CLUMP OF TREES INTO THE LIGHT. IN FRONT OF DAVID STANDS THE SKETCHED FIGURE OF A CHILD DANCING, UNTOUCHED BY ANY WASH AND WITH VIGOROUS PENTIMENTI, WHICH ARE CHARACTERISTIC OF THE ARTIST'S LATE DRAWINGS.
THE SUBJECT OF DAVID DANCING IN FRONT OF THE ARK WOULD HAVE NATURALLY APPEALED TO LE SUEUR. SCENES FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT OFFERED ARTISTS THE OPPORTUNITY TO PAINT CYCLES FOR, ALTHOUGH RELIGIOUS, THEY WERE REGARDED AS HISTORICAL SUBJECTS APPROPRIATE FOR DOMESTIC SETTINGS. SUCH CYCLES WERE PARTICULARLY POPULAR AMONG MEMBERS OF THE PARLIAMENT AND THE HAUTE BOURGEOISIE. LE SUEUR PAINTED SEVERAL SUCH CYCLES, ONE OF MOSES, AND ANOTHER OF TOBIAS. HE MAY ALSO HAVE BEEN AWARE OF THE ICONOGRAPHIC SIGNIFICANCE OF THE SUBJECT. KING DAVID WAS FREQUENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH ACADEMIES FOR, LIKE APOLLO, HE WAS REGARDED AS A SYMBOL OF HARMONY AND POETRY. DAVID IS LARGELY ABSENT FROM THE ICONOGRAPHY OF THE SCHOOL OF FONTAINEBLEAU, BUT APPEARS IN A DRAWING OF THE PROCESSION OF KING HENRI III ON THE OCCAISION ON THE CREATION OF THE ORDER OF SAINT'ESPRIT IN 1579. IN 1612 AN ACADEMY OF THE COMPANIONS OF KING DAVID WAS CREATED IN PARIS. LE SUEUR, WHO WAS A MEMBER OF THE SOPHISTICATED CIRCLE OF ANNE DE CHAMBRE, WOULD HAVE BEEN AWARE OF SUCH CONNOTATIONS. ABRAHAM DE BOSSE, ONE OF LE SUEUR'S CLOSEST FRIENDS ENGRAVED A PRINT OF THIS SUBJECT