Watteau (artist): photo and biography

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Antoine Watteau is an artist whose biography is described in this article. It was one of the most original and famous in the 18th century. And he became the creator of a new style - Rococo, based on the traditions of Dutch and Flemish art.

Early years

The artist Antoine Watteau was born on 1684-10-10 in Valenciennes. Initially, the city was Flemish, but then went to France. Antoine's father worked as a carpenter and roofer, but earned little. However, noticing his son's interest in drawing, when Antoine painted small paintings from everyday life, he gave him training to a local artist.

But his teacher could not be called talented. His lessons gave Antoine almost nothing. And at the age of 18, he went to Paris on foot, wanting to find a mentor who would help him improve in painting.

First job

Since 1702, Antoine has been living in Paris. At first, he had a pretty hard time. To feed himself, he got a job as an apprentice for artists in the workshop of Marietta, which was located on the Notre Dame bridge. Painters wrote for a merchant who was only interested in a quick sale of paintings. Masterworkshop paid his workers pennies. And for them, painters copied lurid paintings. Watteau is an artist who resented this attitude towards art. But he had to endure until he found a real teacher.

The first real teacher - C. Gillo

And fate gave Antoine a gift - a meeting with C. Gillot, a real talented artist. Watteau became his student. K. Gillo preferred to write rural plots, theatrical scenes, village holidays. Watteau mastered this theme to perfection and subsequently often adhered to it. She was close to him in spirit. But it soon became clear that the inclinations and tastes of Gillot and Watteau did not coincide in many ways. And this led to the rupture of their relationship. But this did not prevent Antoine from maintaining respect and appreciation for the teacher throughout his life.

New teacher - K. Odran

Watto started looking for a new teacher. They became Claude Audran. He was engaged in decorations and wood carving. From 1707 to 1708 Watteau worked and studied with K. Odran. These classes taught him fluidity, expressiveness and ease in painting. Since Audran was the curator of the painting collection of the Luxembourg Palace, Antoine also had the opportunity to admire the art of the old masters.

Most of all he was attracted to the paintings of Rubens. Partly because he, too, was a Fleming, and the craftsman's art had a tactile persuasiveness. But Watteau wanted to paint his own paintings, and not copy other people's ideas. And he decided to leave Odran.

Watto changes hislife

Under the pretext of wanting to go to his native land, Antoine said goodbye to the teacher. Arriving home, Watteau painted several paintings. And when he returned to Paris, he applied to the Academy of Arts for participation in the competition. The winner had to go to Rome for further education. But only second place was given to Watteau. The artist who took the first place, subsequently could not become a great master.

Education

But anyway, Antoine needed an education. And his path still lay through the Academy of Arts. In 1712, Watteau managed to enter this institution. He had the opportunity to receive the title of academician, which he received in 1718

Life and work

After a while he became a famous Parisian artist. His paintings were very popular, and fans did not let pass, wanting to talk with a talented painter. This is partly why Watteau had to move frequently.

But the reason for this was also some qualities of nature. Watteau is an artist who was characterized by inconstancy and a love of change. So constant moving not only saved him from excessive attention of fans, but also satisfied his spiritual impulses. He needed silence. Watteau liked to copy paintings by old artists. And it had a great influence on his own creativity.

As Antoine's friends described him, he was of a slight build and of average height. His mind was always perceptive, alive. Watteau spoke little, he expressed all his emotions indrawings and paintings. Constant thoughtfulness created a feeling of a certain melancholy nature. In communication, Antoine was often cold, which embarrassed even friends, making them feel awkward.

Indifference was one of Watteau's serious shortcomings. Another “fad” is contempt for money. The enormous popularity of his paintings and the amounts offered for them annoyed the artist. He always believed that the works of art he painted were paid too much, and he returned everything that seemed to him to be surplus.

Drawings, like paintings, Antoine did not write for sale, but exclusively for himself, expressing on paper and canvas the most subtle nuances of human emotions - irony, anxiety, sadness. The heroes of Watteau's works were shy, awkward, flirtatious, and so on. And it's amazing how the artist could convey these subtle shades of the human soul.

Watto is an artist who created a new style - rococo. All Antoine's paintings are imbued with a light virtuosity of writing, a variety of tonal shades, and poetic play. Many paintings kept at the Academy of Arts have acquired the status of honorary ones. Watteau transferred many subjects to canvas, starting from his sketch drawings. Even early works anticipated the future style of a true master.

Illness and death of the artist

The French painter Watteau died on 1721-18-07 at the age of 36. The cause of death was consumption. Part of the disease was aggravated by a trip to England in 1720. He lived there for almost a year. In England, Watteau worked a lot, and his paintings hadgreat success. But the climate of this country was not conducive to good he alth, which began to deteriorate. Even before the trip to England, Watteau fell ill with consumption. And this disease began to progress. Watteau returned home quite sick.

He settled with a friend who traded paintings. But due to illness, Watteau became very weak and worked only in the mornings. Six months later, he wished to change his place of residence, and friends helped him move to Nogent. But the disease did not recede. Watteau was getting weaker and weaker, he wanted to return to his home, but did not have time.