Francois Clouet Painting Reproductions 2 of 4
c.1510-1572
French Mannerist Painter
Francois Clouet (c. 1510 – 22 December 1572) son of Jean Clouet, was a French Renaissance miniaturist and painter, particularly known for his detailed portraits of the French ruling family.
Clouet was born in Tours.
The earliest reference to him is a document dated December 1541, in which the king renounces for the benefit of Francois his father's estate, which had escheated to the crown as the estate of a foreigner. In this document, the younger Clouet is said to have followed his father very closely in his art. Like his father, he held the office of groom of the chamber and painter in ordinary to the king, and so far as salary is concerned, he started where his father left off. Many drawings are attributed to this artist, often without perfect certainty. There is, however, more to go upon than there is in the case of his father.
As the praises of Francois Clouet were sung by the writers of the day, his name was carefully preserved from reign to reign, and there is an ancient and unbroken tradition in the attribution of many of his pictures. There are not, however, any original attestations of his works, nor are any documents known which would guarantee the ascriptions usually accepted. To him are attributed the portraits of Francis I at the Uffizi and at the Louvre, and various drawings relating to them. He probably also painted the portrait of Catherine de Medici at Versailles and other works, and in all probability a large number of the drawings ascribed to him were from his hand. One of his most remarkable portraits is that of Mary, queen of Scots, a drawing in chalks in the Bibliotheque Nationale, and of similar character are the two portraits of Charles IX and the one at Chantilly of Marguerite of France. Perhaps his masterpiece is the portrait of Elizabeth of Austria in the Louvre.
He resided in Paris in the rue de Ste Avoye in the Temple quarter, close to the Hotel de Guise, and in 1568 is known to have been under the patronage of Claude Gouffier de Boisy, Seigneur d'Oiron, and his wife Claude de Baune. Another ascertained fact concerning Francois Clouet is that in 1571 he was summoned to the office of the Court of the Mint, and his opinion was taken on the likeness to the king of a portrait struck by the mint. He prepared the death-mask of Henry II, as in 1547 he had taken a similar mask of the face and hands of Francis I., in order that the effigy to be used at the funeral might be prepared from his drawings; and on each of these occasions he executed the painting to be used in the decorations of the church and the banners for the great ceremony.
Several miniatures are believed to be his work, one very remarkable portrait being the half-length figure of Henry II in the collection of J. Pierpont Morgan. Another of his portraits is that of the duc d'Alencon in the Jones collection at South Kensington, and certain representations of members of the royal family which were in the Hamilton Palace collection and the Magniac sale are usually ascribed to him. He died on the 22nd of December 1572, shortly after the massacre of St Bartholomew, and his will, mentioning his sister and his two illegitimate daughters, and dealing with the disposition of a considerable amount of property, is still in existence. His daughters subsequently became nuns.
His work is remarkable for the extreme accuracy of the drawing, the elaborate finish of all the details, and the exquisite completeness of the whole portrait. He must have been a man of high intelligence, and of great penetration, intensely interested in his work, and with considerable ability to represent the character of his sitter in his portraits. His coloring is perhaps not specially remarkable, nor from the point of style can his pictures be considered especially beautiful, but in perfection of drawing he has hardly any equal.
Clouet was born in Tours.
The earliest reference to him is a document dated December 1541, in which the king renounces for the benefit of Francois his father's estate, which had escheated to the crown as the estate of a foreigner. In this document, the younger Clouet is said to have followed his father very closely in his art. Like his father, he held the office of groom of the chamber and painter in ordinary to the king, and so far as salary is concerned, he started where his father left off. Many drawings are attributed to this artist, often without perfect certainty. There is, however, more to go upon than there is in the case of his father.
As the praises of Francois Clouet were sung by the writers of the day, his name was carefully preserved from reign to reign, and there is an ancient and unbroken tradition in the attribution of many of his pictures. There are not, however, any original attestations of his works, nor are any documents known which would guarantee the ascriptions usually accepted. To him are attributed the portraits of Francis I at the Uffizi and at the Louvre, and various drawings relating to them. He probably also painted the portrait of Catherine de Medici at Versailles and other works, and in all probability a large number of the drawings ascribed to him were from his hand. One of his most remarkable portraits is that of Mary, queen of Scots, a drawing in chalks in the Bibliotheque Nationale, and of similar character are the two portraits of Charles IX and the one at Chantilly of Marguerite of France. Perhaps his masterpiece is the portrait of Elizabeth of Austria in the Louvre.
He resided in Paris in the rue de Ste Avoye in the Temple quarter, close to the Hotel de Guise, and in 1568 is known to have been under the patronage of Claude Gouffier de Boisy, Seigneur d'Oiron, and his wife Claude de Baune. Another ascertained fact concerning Francois Clouet is that in 1571 he was summoned to the office of the Court of the Mint, and his opinion was taken on the likeness to the king of a portrait struck by the mint. He prepared the death-mask of Henry II, as in 1547 he had taken a similar mask of the face and hands of Francis I., in order that the effigy to be used at the funeral might be prepared from his drawings; and on each of these occasions he executed the painting to be used in the decorations of the church and the banners for the great ceremony.
Several miniatures are believed to be his work, one very remarkable portrait being the half-length figure of Henry II in the collection of J. Pierpont Morgan. Another of his portraits is that of the duc d'Alencon in the Jones collection at South Kensington, and certain representations of members of the royal family which were in the Hamilton Palace collection and the Magniac sale are usually ascribed to him. He died on the 22nd of December 1572, shortly after the massacre of St Bartholomew, and his will, mentioning his sister and his two illegitimate daughters, and dealing with the disposition of a considerable amount of property, is still in existence. His daughters subsequently became nuns.
His work is remarkable for the extreme accuracy of the drawing, the elaborate finish of all the details, and the exquisite completeness of the whole portrait. He must have been a man of high intelligence, and of great penetration, intensely interested in his work, and with considerable ability to represent the character of his sitter in his portraits. His coloring is perhaps not specially remarkable, nor from the point of style can his pictures be considered especially beautiful, but in perfection of drawing he has hardly any equal.
86 Francois Clouet Paintings
Francis II and Charles IX of France n.d.
Oil Painting
$2777
$2777
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5897
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 25.4 x 30.5 cm
Private Collection
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 25.4 x 30.5 cm
Private Collection
Portrait of Hercule-Francois de France Duke of Alencon c.1560
Oil Painting
$2347
$2347
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5898
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 48 x 32 cm
The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 48 x 32 cm
The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia
King Charles IX of France c.1565
Oil Painting
$5689
$5689
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5899
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 222 x 115 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 222 x 115 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria
Portrait of King Henri II of France n.d.
Oil Painting
$3671
$3671
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5900
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Italy
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Italy
Portrait of Margaret Duchess of Parma, Regent of ... c.1559/67
Oil Painting
$2099
$2099
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5901
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 28.8 x 23.5 cm
Private Collection
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 28.8 x 23.5 cm
Private Collection
Portrait of a Bearded Gentleman, Aged 26 1565
Oil Painting
$1429
$1429
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5902
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 44.5 x 44.5 cm
Private Collection
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 44.5 x 44.5 cm
Private Collection
Portrait of Elizabeth of Austria Queen of France 1571
Oil Painting
$3794
$3794
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5903
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 36 x 26 cm
Louvre Museum, Paris, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 36 x 26 cm
Louvre Museum, Paris, France
Portrait of a Man, possibly Don John of Austria c.1570
Oil Painting
$1108
$1108
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5904
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 23 cm
Czartoryski Museum, Krakow, Poland
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 23 cm
Czartoryski Museum, Krakow, Poland
Portrait of Louise de Lorraine n.d.
Oil Painting
$6887
$6887
Canvas Print
$81.51
$81.51
SKU: CLF-5905
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 145.4 x 113.7 cm
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 145.4 x 113.7 cm
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA
Charles IX King of France n.d.
Oil Painting
$4972
$4972
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5906
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Musee Carnavalet, Paris, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Musee Carnavalet, Paris, France
Marguerite de Valois c.1561
Oil Painting
$2347
$2347
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5907
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 24 cm
Musee Conde, Chantilly, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 24 cm
Musee Conde, Chantilly, France
Madeleine Le Clerc du Tremblay c.1570
Oil Painting
$1623
$1623
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5908
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 34.5 x 24.9 cm
Private Collection
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 34.5 x 24.9 cm
Private Collection
Hercule-Francois, Duke of Alencon, Anjou and Brabant c.1556/58
Oil Painting
$2400
$2400
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5909
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 23 cm
Private Collection
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 23 cm
Private Collection
Portrait of King Charles IX of France 1561
Oil Painting
$2033
$2033
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5911
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 25 x 21 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 25 x 21 cm
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria
Francoise Breze- Duchesse de Bouillon 1550
Oil Painting
$2182
$2182
SKU: CLF-5912
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Private Collection
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Private Collection
Portrait of Antoine de Bourbon 1557
Oil Painting
$2964
$2964
Canvas Print
$48.70
$48.70
SKU: CLF-5913
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 23 cm
Musee National du Chateau de Pau, Pau, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 31 x 23 cm
Musee National du Chateau de Pau, Pau, France
Portrait of Charles Halluin, Monsieur de Pienne n.d.
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5914
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 29.5 x 21.7 cm
Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 29.5 x 21.7 cm
Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA
Francis II of France c.1560
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5915
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 34.2 x 23 cm
Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 34.2 x 23 cm
Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, Massachusetts, USA
Le Sire de Saint-Cornille n.d.
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5916
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 30.4 x 20.8 cm
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts, USA
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 30.4 x 20.8 cm
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts, USA
Louis de Saint-Galais, Seigneur de Lansac n.d.
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5917
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 30.5 x 20 cm
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts, USA
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 30.5 x 20 cm
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts, USA
Le Marechal de Montmorency n.d.
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5918
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 30.8 x 21.6 cm
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts, USA
Francois Clouet
Original Size: 30.8 x 21.6 cm
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts, USA
Louis I of Bourbon 1st Prince of Conde, Duke of ... n.d.
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5919
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Musee Conde, Chantilly, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Musee Conde, Chantilly, France
Louis de Chandio Lord of Bussy c.1520
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5920
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Musee Conde, Chantilly, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Musee Conde, Chantilly, France
Marguerite of Valois 1568
Paper Art Print
$46.38
$46.38
SKU: CLF-5921
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, France
Francois Clouet
Original Size: unknown
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, France