Georges ROUGET (1783-1869, élève de David), entourage... Lot n° 11

Portrait of Napoleon in court dress. Oil on canvas. Circa 1812. The emperor Napoleon is dressed in a court suit called "petit habillement de l'Empereur", of purple velvet with a coat embellished with gold and silver embroidery, the white satin lining is embroidered with gold on the facings and the collar. He wears the large collar, the large cord and the plate of the Legion of Honor. In a rectangular gilded wood frame. H. 65 x W. 55 cm. Frame : H. 85 x W. 74 cm. History This portrait is a bust of the Emperor as Rouget painted it in his composition "The French princes come to pay homage to H.M. the King of Rome, in the presence of the Emperor and the Empress". This painting was exhibited at the Salon of 1812, the first Salon in which the young artist, principal collaborator and favorite of the great painter David, participated. At that time, Rouget was trying to emancipate himself from his apprenticeship, while remaining faithful and attached to the studio of the Emperor's first painter. Probably a study before the final work, drawn from the painting to study the figure of the Emperor again, or the work of the students of Rouget's studio, our portrait remains nevertheless completed in the model of Napoleon's face, but also in the study of the red velvet and embroidery on white-ivory satin of the imperial habit. The rare portraits of Napoleon in "petit habillement de cour Representations of Napoleon in his court dress are relatively rare. The Emperor had always preferred to be represented either in military dress as a horse hunter or as a grenadier of the Guard, to remind his contemporaries of the genius of his conquests, or sometimes in the grand costume of the coronation to underline his greatness as guarantor of the institutions of the Empire. Our bust portrait could be compared to the iconography left by Andrea Appiani (1754-1817) when he painted the portrait of Napoleon Viceroy of Italy: the Emperor's racy face is turned to the right and the emphasis is on the magnificence of the great court dress with the great collar of the Legion of Honor. In another iconography close to our model, Gioacchino Serangeli (1768-1852), an Italian painter living in Paris since 1790 and a pupil of David, exhibited at the Salon of 1808 a beautiful composition showing Napoleon in full court dress receiving a deputation from the army after his coronation in 1804. Since Napoleon's marriage to Marie-Louise, and especially the birth in 1811 of the King of Rome, heir to the Empire, the military and triumphant image of the Emperor tends to fade in favor of representations of peace, highlighting the splendor of the Empire. Rouget at the Salon of 1812 The portrait of Napoleon painted by Rouget is a study or a reworking of the painting he presented at the 1812 Salon. The genesis of the painting by Rouget, recognized by his contemporaries as the first assistant of the famous David, is quite emblematic of the artist's character; the little information we have on Rouget's life and career always insists on the fidelity and self-sacrifice of the one who, discovered by David, remained modestly in his shadow. One of the artist's biographers, Hénard, gives us some details: this work "was done secretly, perpetrated as a forfeit without David's knowledge, during rare moments of leisure and in the solitude of nights. Rouget composed his figures as he could, relying on memories of the Rite, using sketches of the costumes he had previously reproduced and whose colors he changed (...). According to the same author, the young artist submitted the finished work to his master who expressed his approval. It should also be noted that Rouget borrowed many elements from the painting of the Rite of Corpus Christi, to which he had collaborated closely. Presented at the Salon of 1812, the painting will be praised by critics including Durdent: "Mr. Rouget has made a much better use of his time and talent, in his painting (No. 808), the French Princes come to pay their respects to H.M. the King of Rome, in the presence of LL. MM. the Emperor and the Empress. This work announces an in-depth study of the manner of M. David; but one does not find there a slavish imitation of the productions of this great master. If the young artist has tried to penetrate his principles, he has known how to think after himself. The result is a simple, noble composition in which each spectator realizes with pleasure that the painter has not presumed too much of his strength, in treating such a subject." Denon, Director of the Louvre Museum, proposed the acquisition to the Emperor for 5000 francs and added this note to his attention: "Painting by M. Rouget, very well painted and in which the figure of H.M. the Emperor is worthily represented" [cf. Archives Nationales, O2/845, Projet des tableaux dont le Directeur propose l'acquisition, December 1812]. First assistant and favorite