LLEI D'ART 14

DrawingVersailles: CharlesLeBrun (1619-1690) CaixaForumMadrid Until the 14th February 2016 Three and a half centuries after its completion, the grand decorationof thePalace of Versailles has lost none of its power to fascinate. Organised together with theMusée du Louvre and curatedbyBénédict Gady, a scientific investigator in theGraphicArts deparment, Drawing Versailles allows us inside the heart of the creationof this decoration through the sketches andpreparatory drawings madeby the Frenchpainter Charles LeBrun (1619-1690) for theAmbassadors’ Staircase and theHall ofMirrors. The 75 cartoons – drawn at 1:1 scale – display LeBrun’s skill as adraughtsman, his talent for constructing scenes and the strength that he imprints on them. They are studies of characters, allegorical figures, trophies and animals integrated into the compositions, all of whichweredrawnup as large symbolicpuzzles. Born in1619 to amodest sculptor-cum-graveyard stonecutter father and amother from a family of calligraphers, the artist Charles LeBrun (1619-1690) was soondiscoveredbyChancellor Séguier, who sent his protégé to Italy. Upon his return, LeBrun increased his decorativework experience inParis andVaux-le-Vicomte beforeplacing himself exclusively at the service of Louis XIV. Thanks to the unconditional support of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Charles LeBrunwas theKing’smainpainter from 1664 to 1683. In 1682Louis XIVmoved the FrenchCourt toVersailles and the city became the kingdom’s political and administrative heart for a century. Throughout the previous twenty years, however, Versailleswas apermanent worksite that remodeled thepark,multiplied the number of buildings anddecorated the chamberswithgranddecorative depictions to the glory of themonarch. LeBrunwas responsible for planning theworks, whichhe ran as if theywere anorchestra: therewere hundreds of artists and artisans involved, the very best in their field. Le Brunpersonally had a hand in some of theparts, including two impressive compositions: theAmbassadors’ Staircase and theHall ofMirrors, and a collectionof paintings from his morematureperiod, all moving in their beauty. The exhibition attempts to explore the genesis of these great pieces through the unique testament of the cartoons requisitioned by theCrownupon LeBrun’s death. Theseworks (at scale of thepaintings) were used todraw the outlines of the latter and show us how the artist and his assistantsworked, given that the use of tools is rather noticeable in the cartoons. TheAmbassadors’ Staircasewas the first representation of the king’s power at Versailles as a stairway that led to the king’s grand chambers. It was started around 1671, decoratedbetween1674 and 1679 anddisappeared in 1752during the reignof Louis XV. LeBrun trulymade the most of a narrow space that only receivedoverhead lighting. Usingoptical illusion, he increased the sensationof space, mixing fact and fiction to create an allegorical composition that depicted the returnof Louis XIV after one of hismilitary victories. LeBrun surrounded the kingwith representatives from nations in the four continents, the kings of Antiquity, victories, cupids and the arts: amonumental composition to the honour andglory of the absolutemonarch. The cartoons reveal that LeBrunworkedon theAmbassadors’ Staircase to the very lastminute, retouching and improving his drawings. Thepaintings in theHall ofMirrors enable us to follow, stepby step, the artist’sworkingprocess, from the first small sketches, their pencil strokes embodyingpowerful movement, to the final drawings, which are the same size as thepaintings themselves. Also conserved are the engraved copies of the overall work, produced for thepurpose of making this artistic accomplishment knownbeyondFrench borders, adding to themonarch’s fame. InEuropeanpainting, the figure of the kingwas traditionally representedby amythological figure: Apollo, Hercules and soon. LeBrun, however, portrays the king leadinghis armies to victory, wearing an ancient breastplate and amodernwig, in adialoguewith the gods and allegories. Twoof themost important scenes on the ceiling are represented: the king’s decision to rule alone in1661 until the endof thewar with Holland. One of themost famous episodes in thiswar, The Crossingof theRhine in 1672, is shown through cartoons exactly as theywere found in LeBrun’s studio. The exhibitionpresents anoriginal and exceptional format that is largely unknown to thepublic: thepainter’s preparatory cartoons. Thesewere enormous drawings at 1:1 scale that were used to transfer the outlines of themodels to thewalls anddomes. Such cartoonswere commonly usedbetween the 16th and19th centuries, but few have reachedour days. Composedof various sheets of paper, theywere executed inblack pencil andwhite chalk –with occasional additions in sanguine – andwere considered workdesigns, not tobe exhibited. Thoseproducedby Le Brun are the exception: three hundred and fifty cartoons in a store of three thousanddrawings found at the artist’s studio, requisitioned and added to the royal collections after his death in1690. Charles LeBrun. Las diversas naciones deAsia (detalle) / Thediferent nations of Asia (detail). Museodel Louvre©RMN-GrandPalais. Foto/ Photo C. Chavan 105