Jaques Louis David
(1748 - 1825) France
Artist
David was born in Paris. He studied under Boucher, won the Prix de Rome in 1774, a 4 year scholarship to study art in Rome, and during the Revolution he was an ardent supporter of the republicans. David was very interested in the art as well as the culture of ancient Rome. He was elected to the Convention and a member of the Committee of Public Safety, and narrowly escaped the guilootine.
His most famous paintings are The Sabine Women and Mme Récamier, fine examples of neoclassicism. In his Death of Marat, he turned political murder into a classical tragedy.
David would become the symbol of the "new France" , and would be the favorite painter of Napoleon Bonaparte, to whom he became court painter; he produced heroic portraits and scenes celebrating the glory of the Empire.
David's political ties wouldn't always work to his advantage. For his support of Napoleon, David would be forced into 2 exiles during his lifetime - he was banished by the Bourbons, and settled in Brussels.
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