Antoine Berjon
Encyclopedia
Antoine Berjon was a French
painter
and designer, among the most important flower painters of 19th-century France. He worked in a variety of media including oil
, pastel
, watercolour, and ink
.
Berjon was born in St Pierre de Vaise, a commune of Lyon
, to the son of a butcher, and he first studied drawing with the local sculptor Antoine-Michel Perrache (1726–1779). His early history is not clear; according to his uncorroborated biographer J. Gaubin, he may have studied medicine or a religious vocation, learning flower painting during his novitiate
. He went to work as a designer of textiles in Lyon's important silk industry until its collapse with the French Revolution
.
Berjon's paintings from the 1780s are untraced. In 1791, the Paris Salon
accepted four of his works, including Still Life of Peaches and Grapes. He visited Paris often in the early 1790s and moved there in 1794, becoming a friend of Jean-Baptiste-Jean Augustin (1759–1832), a painter of miniatures, and of Claude-Jean-Baptiste Hoin (1750–1817), a portraitist. Living in Paris for 17 years, he exhibited at the Salon at least five times.
By the time of his return to Lyon in 1810, his reputation had increased, and he became the professor of flower design at the newly established École des Beaux-Arts
, which had been founded by Napoleon's decree in 1807 to revive Lyon's silk industry. He was dismissed in 1823 after a 13-year appointment, replaced by his gifted pupil Augustin Thierrat (1789–1870). His temperament probably put him in conflict with the school's administration; he was known for his stubbornness, and some contemporaries viewed him as egotistical, a characterization that remained throughout his life. He set up his own studio in Lyon, giving private instruction, and continued to make art for the last two decades of his life. He died in Lyon at 89.
, diversifying the subject matter to represent the age's new sense of nature. The freshness and delicacy of the blooms contrasts with the age and permanence of the petrifications.
Bouquet of Lilies and Roses in a Basket Resting on a Chiffonier (1814), held by the Louvre
, is also characteristic of his work. Berjon was a portraitist as well: J. Halévy with his Brother and Sister (1820) is an example.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and designer, among the most important flower painters of 19th-century France. He worked in a variety of media including oil
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
, pastel
Pastel
Pastel is an art medium in the form of a stick, consisting of pure powdered pigment and a binder. The pigments used in pastels are the same as those used to produce all colored art media, including oil paints; the binder is of a neutral hue and low saturation....
, watercolour, and ink
Ink
Ink is a liquid or paste that contains pigments and/or dyes and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing and/or writing with a pen, brush, or quill...
.
Berjon was born in St Pierre de Vaise, a commune of Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, to the son of a butcher, and he first studied drawing with the local sculptor Antoine-Michel Perrache (1726–1779). His early history is not clear; according to his uncorroborated biographer J. Gaubin, he may have studied medicine or a religious vocation, learning flower painting during his novitiate
Novitiate
Novitiate, alt. noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a novice monastic or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether they are called to the religious life....
. He went to work as a designer of textiles in Lyon's important silk industry until its collapse with the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
Berjon's paintings from the 1780s are untraced. In 1791, the Paris Salon
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
accepted four of his works, including Still Life of Peaches and Grapes. He visited Paris often in the early 1790s and moved there in 1794, becoming a friend of Jean-Baptiste-Jean Augustin (1759–1832), a painter of miniatures, and of Claude-Jean-Baptiste Hoin (1750–1817), a portraitist. Living in Paris for 17 years, he exhibited at the Salon at least five times.
By the time of his return to Lyon in 1810, his reputation had increased, and he became the professor of flower design at the newly established École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The most famous is the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, now located on the left bank in Paris, across the Seine from the Louvre, in the 6th arrondissement. The school has a history spanning more than 350 years,...
, which had been founded by Napoleon's decree in 1807 to revive Lyon's silk industry. He was dismissed in 1823 after a 13-year appointment, replaced by his gifted pupil Augustin Thierrat (1789–1870). His temperament probably put him in conflict with the school's administration; he was known for his stubbornness, and some contemporaries viewed him as egotistical, a characterization that remained throughout his life. He set up his own studio in Lyon, giving private instruction, and continued to make art for the last two decades of his life. He died in Lyon at 89.
Art
One of Berjon's important works is his Still Life With Flowers, Shells, a Shark's Head, and Petrifications (1819). He completed the painting while still professor at the École des Beaux-Arts. The work's detailed depictions of blossoms recall the Dutch flower painters of two centuries past, but the items accompanying the flowers suggest no ordinary still life. The skeletal shark's head and the seashells are at first incongruous, but show that Berjon has adapted his style to the era of the EnlightenmentAge of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
, diversifying the subject matter to represent the age's new sense of nature. The freshness and delicacy of the blooms contrasts with the age and permanence of the petrifications.
Bouquet of Lilies and Roses in a Basket Resting on a Chiffonier (1814), held by the Louvre
Louvre
The Musée du Louvre – in English, the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, the most visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement...
, is also characteristic of his work. Berjon was a portraitist as well: J. Halévy with his Brother and Sister (1820) is an example.
Sources
- Mitchell, Peter. "Berjon, Antoine." Grove Art Online. Oxford University Press. Retrieved August 30, 2007.