 Figure 1.-- This unidentified boy looks to be one of the smallm portraits that Boilley painted as a teen ger just before the Revolution. He had no training abnd he did them very rapidly, but gthey are niceky done. |
|
Boilly was one of the most prolific artists of all time. Some 5,000 paintings and drawing are ascribed to him. He is known for both his genre works and portraits. He was also a talented draftsman. . Many of his paintings and real life scenes provide ifascinating glimpses of French boys' fashions of his time. He painted many well crafted portrait paintings. He is perhaps best known for a vast number of genre paintings which provide views of middle-class social life during the tumultous late-18th abnd early-19th century. His life and body of work spanned the Bourbon monarchical France, the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Empire, the Bourbon Restoration, as well as the July Monarchy. No other single artust has privided us wuth such a huge body if ork bringing these eras to life. We do not see the super-patriotic imges of David, but rather the ordinary day-to-day life of the French people while the great issus of the day were being resolved. And mixed in with the groups of people in his genre paintings are many children.
Boilly began by paiting portrauits. He painted several housabnd of them duing his career. The first ones as a yiung teenager were small ones depicting the face or perhaps the torso. Although commonly executed very quickly, they are veryb nicely done. As a more established artist we see more elaborate, well finished portraits of the highest quality. Boilly was also well respected for his portraiture, but unlike the genre paintings were not particularkly destinctive. They do, however, provide many images of the middle classes and famous individuals of the day.
The tradition of paintings scenes of everyday life began in the Netherlands. It was in 18th century France, however, that it reached the peak of elegance and sophistication. His early works showed a tendency for amorous and moralising subjects. A giod example is 'The Suitor's Gift'. His early genre works were small-scale paintings with carefully mannered coloring and detailing shhowing the influence of 17th century Dutch genre painters. including as Gabriel Metsu (1629–67), Willem van Mieris and Gerard ter Borch (1617–81). Boilly himself amassed an important collection of their work. Boilly in the 1790s began to create more complicated, crowded compositions on larger canvases. Art cru=itics have labeked them social chronicles.In the 19th century genre painting developed into social realism, with subjects often taken from the lives of ordinary people, including the peasantry. Many of his paintings and real life scenes provide fascinating glimpses of French boys' fashions of his time. He painted many well crafted portrait paintings. He is perhaps best known for a vast number of genre paintings which provide views of middle-class social life during the tumultous late-18th abnd early-19th century. His life and body of work spanned the Bourbon monarchical France, the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Empire, the Bourbon Restoration, as well as the July Monarchy. No other single artust has privided us wuth such a huge body if ork bringing these eras to life. We do not see the super-patriotic imges of David, but rather the ordinary day-to-day life of the French people while the great issus of the day were being resolved. One of his best known works is 'The Arrival of the Diligence' (Louvre, 1803).
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Return to the Main Louis Boilley page]
[Return to the Main American artist page]
[Return to the Main American page]
[Introduction] [Activities][Artists][Biographies][Chronology] [Clothing styles][Countries][Girls]
[Bibliographies][Contributions][FAQs][Glossaries][Images][Links][Registration][Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing artistic pages:
[Return to the Main artistic page]
[Chronologies][Individuals][National][Styles]