Charles-Philippe LARIVIÈRE (1798-1876) Lot n° 2

Portrait of Louis-Philippe d'Orléans, Duc d'Orléans, known as "Philippe Egalité" (c. 1836). Oil on canvas (restorations). The father of the future King Louis-Philippe is shown full-length and in uniform, after the famous portrait by Joshua Reynolds (Collection of H.M. King Charles III), with a black servant holding the prince's horse by the bridle (this faithful servant of Philippe Egalité also appears in the portrait by Nicolas-Bernard Lépicié (1773), depicting him bending over his son's cradle in the Palais-Royal). H. 61.5 x L. 51 cm. Inscribed lower right on the canvas, "Louis Philippe d'Orléans 1785", and handwritten on the reverse on the stretcher "363" (repeated twice). On a label glued to the stretcher and frame, an early handwritten annotation: "offered by HRH the duchess of Vendôme to Auguste S... Belmont, 27 july 1927" (tears). In a rectangular gilded wood frame. H. 72 x L. 61 cm. Provenance - Commissioned by King Louis-Philippe from painter Charles-Philippe Larivière for the Cabinet de Travail du Roi at Château d'Eu. - Then to his son Louis d'Orléans, Duc de Nemours (1814-1896). - Then to his son Ferdinand d'Orléans, Duc d'Alençon (1844-1910). - Then to his son Emmanuel d'Orléans, Duc de Vendôme (1872-1931). - Given by the Duchesse de Vendôme, née Princess Henriette of Belgium (1870-1948), when the Orléans family collections were moved to Belmont House (Wimbledon, UK) in 1927. - Collin du Bocage sale, Drouot, December 2, 2015, lot 49. - French private collection. Literature Quoted in "Le château d'Eu, notices historiques", Jean Vatout, 1836, tome 5, no. 363 bis. History This painting is undoubtedly the one mentioned as n° "363 bis" in the Vatout, due to its subject, its dimensions, the presence of the number 363 repeated twice on the stretcher on the back and its provenance, from the collection of the Dukes of Vendôme, heirs to King Louis-Philippe's paintings at the Château d'Eu. This full-length portrait of Philippe Egalité was commissioned by his son King Louis-Philippe from the painter Charles-Philippe Larivière in 1836 for his Cabinet de Travail at Château d'Eu, as confirmed by the list of paintings (subject, format) in Château d'Eu (1830-1848) and the inventory of paintings in Château d'Eu in 1848-1850 (inventory no., author, subject and dimensions). These indications are confirmed by King Louis-Philippe's Journal des commandes et acquisitions des peintures, sculptures et gravures de 1831 à 1848, which mentions the commission of a "Portrait en pied du Père du Roi" from the painter Larivière in 1836 (archives consulted by Mr. Xavier Dufestel, expert at the 2015 sale). Compared with the original version by Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792), a version of which can be seen at the Château de Chantilly (see illustration), there is a difference in the treatment of the expression and physiognomy of the face of the man who voted for the death of the King, his cousin, certainly due to Louis-Philippe's desire to give his father a more serene and positive image, more in keeping with the memory the King of the French retained of his father, whose portrait he saw every morning during his stays at the Château d'Eu. Charles-Philippe Larivière (1798-1876), a pupil of Paulin Guérin, Anne-Louis Girodet and Antoine-Jean Gros, studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris from 1813. In 1824, his composition on the subject of La Mort d'Alcibiade won him the Grand Prix de Rome, thanks to which he stayed at the Villa Médicis until 1830. This official artist specialized in history painting. He exhibited for the first time at the Salon of 1827, where he won medals in 1831 and 1855. Larivière benefited from major public commissions under the July Monarchy, and is credited with numerous paintings of battles and public events, portraits of public figures, and religiously inspired canvases. He worked on the Galerie des Batailles at the Château de Versailles and the Musée d'Histoire de France in Versailles, created by King Louis-Philippe. He also created stained-glass cartoons for the Royal Chapel at Dreux.