Simon Schama's Power of Art
Born to a wealthy Parisian family, Jacques-Louis David was aged seven when his father was shot dead in a pistol duel. Brought up by his uncles, his desire was to paint and he was eventually sent to his mother's cousin,
Francois Boucher, the most successful painter in France at the time.
Painting became an important means of communication for David since his face was slashed during a sword fight and his speech became impeded by a benign tumour that developed from the wound, leading him to stammer.
He was interested in painting in a new classical style that departed from the frivolity of the Rococo period and reflected the moral and austere climate before the French Revolution. David became closely aligned with
the republican government and his work was increasingly used as propaganda with the Death of Marat proving his most controversial work.
(from bbc.co.uk)
| Jacques-Louis David |
| Related Links |
| Jacques-Louis David - wikipedia Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825) was an influential French painter in the Neoclassical style, considered to be the preeminent painter of the era. |
| Art of the Western World: The Age of Reason The playful fantasy and provocative subjects of the Rococo style practiced by Watteau, Fragonard, and Boucher gave way to strict Rationalism, which insisted on morality in art and the purity of classical form, as seen in the works of David. |
Go to Simon Schama's Power of Art Home or watch other episodes:
| Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio |
| Gian Lorenzo Bernini |
| Rembrandt van Rijn |
| Jacques-Louis David |
| Joseph Mallord William Turner |
| Vincent Van Gogh |
| Pablo Picasso |
| Mark Rothko |