NARRATOR:
Beginning in the late 18th century, the French embraced all things classical, desiring to instill their society with the civic virtues of ancient Greece and Rome. This painting by Thomas-Germain-Joseph Duvivier depicts the tools of an architect who loved the works of antiquity. Books, a ruler and calipers for measuring represent his ambitions as a man of science and letters. The large floor plan delineates a neoclassical building, inspired, perhaps, by the Ionic capital and the design for a door pinned to the wall.
Notice how the edge of the plan curls into our space, echoing the scroll on the capital, and breaking down the barrier between our world and the world of the picture. Creamy whites predominate, reinforced by soft grays and browns, and enlivened by touches of green and red. Duvivier takes advantage of his subject by lavishing attention on textures of paper—from the crinkled edge of the plans, to well-worn book pages, to a bookmark just sticking out of the fattest volume. The artist uses the edges of paper, instruments and books to create strong diagonals, leading our gaze through the picture while holding the composition in dynamic balance.
A student of the celebrated still-life painter Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin (also represented in this museum’s collection), Duvivier began to exhibit at the Salon of 1761. Like his teacher, he had little interest in the gallant, light-hearted subjects that captivated his predecessors. Instead, he focused on everyday themes, imbuing them with quiet luminosity and beauty.
An Architect's Table
1772
Thomas-Germain-Joseph Duvivier (French, 1735-1814)
On View
Thomas-Germain-Joseph Duvivier, one of Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin’s most talented pupils, began exhibiting still lifes at the Paris Salon in 1761. In this example, an architect’s desk is cluttered with the tools of the trade. Despite the items’ seemingly haphazard arrangement, Duvivier has carefully staged them to maximize their visual interest. The stasis of the heavy Ionic capital and stack of books contrasts with the delicate quill and unfurling plans. In addition, Duvivier has intentionally angled the capital, compass, ruler and quill toward the back left corner. Their leading lines guide our eyes toward the drawing of the doorway, suggesting the source of inspiration for the neoclassical building plans.
Details
- Artist Name: Thomas-Germain-Joseph Duvivier (French, 1735-1814)
- Title: An Architect's Table
- Date: 1772
- Medium: Oil on canvas
- Dimensions: 40-3/8 x 31 in. (102.6 x 78.7 cm)
- Credit Line: Norton Simon Art Foundation
- Accession Number: M.1976.02.P
- Copyright: © Norton Simon Art Foundation
Object Information
Private Collection, New York (sale, New York, Sotheby Parke Bernet, 22-23 January 1976, no. 27, bought by);
[Richard L. Feigen & Co., New York, sold 28 January 1976 to];
Norton Simon Art Foundation.
[Richard L. Feigen & Co., New York, sold 28 January 1976 to];
Norton Simon Art Foundation.
[on loan]
- Phoenix, Phoenix Art Museum, 1976-04-22 to
Reinstallation of Galleries: Art History of the 17th and 18th Century Gains Fresh Dimension
- Norton Simon Museum, 1993-09-02 to 1995-08-13
Significant Objects: The Spell of Still Life
- Norton Simon Museum, 2012-07-20 to 2013-01-21
- Faré, Michel, La Vie Silencieuse en France: La Nature Morte au XVIIe siècle, 1976, fig. 268 pp. 175-180
- Masterpieces from the Norton Simon Museum, 1989, p. 95
- Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 1297 p. 391
- du Bourg, Alexis Merle, Chardin, 2020, 306 p. 335 (ill.)
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