Baron GERARD, after - Lot 310

Lot n° 310
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Estimation :
8000 - 12000 EUR
Baron GERARD, after - Lot 310
Baron GERARD, after 19th century French school Emperor Napoleon I in coronation costume, wearing the grand collar of the Legion of Honor Oil on canvas with oval view (minor restorations) 79 x 64 cm Gilded wood frame decorated with foliate scrolls B.E. History: "Among the prestigious commissions he received, Gérard was awarded the privilege of painting the official portrait of the Emperor in coronation costume in 1804.(...) Indeed, as soon as he was crowned, Napoleon wanted to spread his new image as Emperor.(...) Gérard gives us an image of a solemn but incarnate Emperor. The portrait is all the more successful for the fact that Napoleon never posed (...) Gérard worked with models, but still managed to give the new Emperor a noble, human dimension. Gérard respected the balance between the sacred and reality, which is why his version will be preferred to the others. In the full-length portrait, the Emperor adopts a three-quarter pose inherited from portraits of Bourbon kings, as in Hyacinthe Rigaud's Portrait de Louis XIV en costume de sacre, painted in 1701. This "grand habillement" differs from the attire of the monarchs of the Ancien Régime. The crimson color of the mantle replaces the royal blue, in keeping with the tradition of Roman emperors. The mantle features a bee and intertwined olive, oak and laurel branches, encircling the number N. The regalia, traditional symbols of the monarchy, are readapted and cohabit with the new insignia of power. These ornaments were the work of the greatest silversmiths of the early 19th century. The crown of golden laurels - also inherited from ancient iconography - the grand collar of the Legion of Honor, the scepter, the hand of justice and the imperial globe on the cushion in the background, were all designed by Martin-Guillaume Biennais, the Emperor's official goldsmith. The coronation sword, whose blade was made by Nicolas-Noël Boutet at the Manufacture d'Armes de Versailles, is set with precious stones by Marie-Etienne Nitot. The shell features the famous Regent diamond. The handle and gold trim on the tortoiseshell scabbard were entrusted to goldsmith Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot. In the background is the throne backrest created by cabinetmaker Jacob-Desmalter to a design by Percier et Fontaine for the Tuileries Palace. Gérard's meticulous attention to detail, combined with his use of the glaze technique, perfectly captures the volumes and nobility of the materials: the refinement of the fabrics that make up the grand costume, the reflections in the globe, the brilliance of the Regent. All these elements work together to create a composition that haloed Napoleon I with a prestige inherited from the greatest kings of France, while giving him a new symbolism". Excerpts from "Napoléon.org", Portrait of Emperor Napoleon I in coronation regalia, by Camille Ubertini, February 2022.
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