Attributed to RENÉ ANTOINE HOUASSE (c. 1645–1... Lot n° 39

Attributed to RENÉ ANTOINE HOUASSE (c. 1645-1710) "Equestrian portrait of Louis XIV. Oil on canvas. Re-coloured. It has repainting and a French frame from the beginning of the 18th century. Measurements: 105 x 85 cm; 121 x 102 cm (frame). This work follows faithfully in its aesthetics the portrait painted around 1679 by Rene Antoine Houasse, which is currently in the Palace of Versailles, while another copy belongs to the collection of the Museum of Ancient Art of Lisbon, in Portugal. In both pieces, the monarch can be seen on a white horse, standing in cabriole, looking regally at the viewer and raising his weapon, which can be seen behind the animal's head. Behind the central figure, a group of figures on horseback are set in a rocky, rugged landscape, where several bonfires stand out, indicating that a war is taking place. This type of representation, in which the monarch is portrayed in an imposing and regal manner on a horse in full activity, became so popular that it became widespread in the pictorial tradition as a representation of absolute power, especially in French painting, where the same aesthetic patterns can be seen, for example in the famous portrait of Napoleon, painted by Jean Louis David. René Antoine Houasse was noted for his work as a painter and decorator at the French court, particularly for his work at the palace of Versailles. He began his training under Charles Le Brun, which led him to work in the equivalent of the Spanish Tapestry Factory, the Gobelins factory in Paris. Owing to his recognition as an artist, he was chosen as director of the French Academy in Rome, a post he held from 1699 to 1704. His painting is notable for its refinement and great interest in drawing, characteristics that are the paradigm of a classicist or academicist aesthetic.