The Interior of David’s Studio at the Collège des Quatre-Nations, Paris

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The Interior of David’s Studio at the Collège des Quatre-Nations, Paris

Artist Léon-Mathieu Cochereau (French, 1793-1817)

Place of OriginParis, France

Date1814-1817

DimensionsH: 34 1/4 in. (87 cm); W: 39 1/2 in. (100.3 cm)

MediumOil on canvas

ClassificationPaintings

Credit LineGift of The Georgia Welles Apollo Society

Object number

1995.8

Not on View

Label TextA glimpse into the Paris studio of the famous painter Jacques-Louis David (see his Oath of the Horatii), this image shows 11 young men earnestly engaged in a life drawing and painting class. David stressed the importance of mastering drawing—his students, including the artist of this canvas, Léon-Mathieu Cochereau, spent up to six hours a day sketching a live model. Because David had supported the French Revolution of 1789, he had to retire from public life when the monarchy was restored in 1814. To avoid touchy political issues, Cochereau did not include the figure of David when he painted an image of his master’s studio for exhibition at the 1814 Paris Salon. Instead, he suggested David’s presence with the draped easel prominently placed before the window. Cochereau (who may be the student seated farthest to the right) was only 24 when he died at sea while on his way to Palestine. Consequently, he left few works behind. Two other versions of his Interior of David’s Studio are known, one in the Louvre, Paris, the other in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.Published ReferencesSouthgate, M. Therese, "The cover," JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 284, no. 9, Sept. 6, 2000, p. 1065, repr. on cover (col.).

Husslein-Arco, Agnes, Johann Peter Krafft: Maler Eines Neuen Osterreich, Vienna, Belvedere, 2016, p.27-28, fig. 1, repr. (col) p. 27, repr. (col. det.) p. 24.

Exhibition HistoryParis, Haboldt & Co., Portrait de l'Artiste: images des peintures 1600-1890, (1991-92), no. 9 (on loan).

Toledo Museum of Art, A Decade of Giving: The Apollo Society at The Toledo Museum of Art, 1996, p. 22, repr. (col.).

Toledo Museum of Art, Paris: City of Art, November 6, 2009-March 14, 2010. (UT student exhibition)

Toledo Museum of Art, Inspired Giving: The Apollo Society 25th Anniversary Exhibition, October 15, 2010-February 13, 2011, p. 25, repr. (col.) p. 25.

Comparative ReferencesSee also Johansen, Annette, Den nogne guldaler: mobilbilleder, C.W. Eckersberg of hans elever, Copenhagen, 1994, p. 27, 157, repr. p. 33. cf. Michel, Regis and Marie-Catherine Sahut, David l'art et le politique, [Paris], p. 113, repr. (col). cf. Jonkman, Mayken ed., The Dutch in Paris, 1789-1914,, Bussum, Amsterdam, THOTH Publishers, 2017, p. 20.