Marguerite Gerard
(28 January 1761 - 18 May 1837) |
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portraiture, domestic genre Art Work
| Name: |
Marguerite Gerard |
| Gender: |
Female |
| Place of Birth: |
Grasse, France |
| Nationality: |
French |
| Birth: |
28 January 1761 |
| Death: |
18 May 1837 |
| Website: |
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| Past Auctions: |
Click Here |
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Quick Facts
| Known For: |
portraiture, domestic genre |
| Medium: |
oil painting, etching |
| Method: |
oil painting, etching |
| Style: |
Realism |
| Fine Art Profession(s): |
Painter
Printmaker
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Biography
Marguerite Gerard was born in Grasse and tutored by her brother-in-law Jean-Honore Fragonard. By the 1780's she had become recognized as a leading artist in annual salon exhibits. Gerard herself was an attractive woman who was also in demand as a model for other artists. She specialized in paintings of domestic scenes, and like Mary Cassat, frequently painted works depicting mothers and children. Although she also produced oil portraits, portrait miniatures, and etchings, Marguerite Gerard is best known for her intimate domestic genre scenes. In the hierarchy of subject types in 18th century France, such paintings ranked higher than portraits or still lifes but considerably lower than history paintings. Yet Gerard, who was something of a rebel (she never married and apparently never demonstrated any interest in joining the Academy), was tremendously successful in her career, which lasted more than 40 years. Gerard won three medals for her work, which she exhibited regularly once the Salons were opened to women in the 1790s, her pictures were acquired by such luminaries as Napoleon and King Louis XVII, she also acquired considerable wealth and real estate.
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Samples of Work
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