Jean-Auguste Dominique Ingres (1780-1867)
FOR THE LOVE OF HISTORY
Jean-Auguste Dominique Ingres believed unquestionably in the virtues of history. As a student of fellow Neoclassicist Jacques Louis David, Ingres acquired a reverence for the past and embraced the art of antiquity. He also maintained contempt for the Romantics throughout his long and sometimes turbulent career—even though his own work possessed many of the same principles. Inasmuch as Ingres desired to be a historical painter, however, he was most gifted—and most successful—as a portrait artist.
Ingres was born in Montauban, France. His father, an amateur artist, sculptor, and musician, encouraged his son’s talent and later sent him to study art in Toulouse. Ingres eventually began training under David and won the coveted Prix de Rome scholarship in 1801 for his painting The Envoys from Agamemnon. The artist subsequently moved to Rome in 1806 where he lived and worked until 1820.
What Ingres possessed in artistic skill and talent, however, he lacked in innovation and creativity; moreover, he often infused his art with unconventional and even peculiar stylistic interpretations. As a result, his work was frequently the subject of criticism and controversy. Yet Ingres was also nothing short of a brilliant draughtsman; he used his divine skills to make money by drawing portraits of tourists in Rome when times got particularly tough. In 1820, Ingres moved to Florence, followed by a move to Paris in 1824. Here, the artist finally hit his stride with his portrait of Louis XIII. He received numerous commissions and accolades and continued to work until his death at the age of 87. —RJR
Notable works: Odalisque, 1814; Amédée-David, Marquis de Pastoret, 1826; Louis Bertin, 1832.
FUN FACT
In addition to being a painter, Ingres was an accomplished violinist; he learned to play the instrument as a child and continued playing throughout his life.