LE PRINCE, Jean-Baptiste

In the eighteenth century, a fête champêtre was often a very elegant form of entertainment involving on occasions whole orchestras hidden in trees, with guests sometimes in fancy dress. Le Prince’s work displays this theme in a completely Russian context: the variety of Russian folk costume and the depiction of a domra (a Russian string instrument) add exoticism to the scene.

In this drawing Le Prince has used a wash to achieve the effect of shadow in the work and this anticipates the use of aquatint in his prints, a technique which achieves an appearance of wash, of which Le Prince was a pioneer.

Jean-Baptiste Le Prince is credited with being the first artist (in 1768) to introduce aquatint into his etched and engraved plates. He may even have been the inventor of aquatint, the etching technique that allows reproduction of wide tonal scale. “Calmouk” is the one of his finest prints. It was created in Russia, and it represents Calmouk warrior from the Central Asia region of Russia.

The present sketch is a study for the figure of a standing girl at the rear left of the exotic Fête Russe, a masterpiece by the artist in the Mus�e des Beaux-Arts, Angers.

This drawing depicts a variety of figures outside a tavern on the outskirts of Moscow. It is a highly finished study for one of Le Prince’s etchings, which were extremely popular and successful in France.

In this painting the artist depicts a musician in a Russian costume sitting on the edge of a bed, absentmindedly plucking his instrument, as the beginnings of a smile creep across his face. The armour he wears, and the bow which can be seen propped against the wall on the right hand side, suggests that he is a soldier. This figure was depicted by Le Prince on more than one occasion.

One of the most popular of Le Prince’s Russified subjects, this work combines the influence of his master Fran�ois Boucher, especially in the portrayal of the female figure, and that of the Northern school, in the refined Rembrandtesque palette. Critics at the Salon of 1775 remarked particularly on the contrast between the rich fabrics and somewhat primitive interior.

There is another, signed version of this painting in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg, and another in the National Gallery, London.

Eighteenth-century ties between France and Russia were particularly close during the reigns of Peter the Great and especially Catherine the Great. Jean-Baptiste Le Prince, from Lorrain, worked at St Petersburg and after spending many years in Russia, made local scenes his speciality.

This characteristic drawing by Le Prince depicts a turbaned man and an elegant young woman dancing together in a small clearing. They are accompanied by two musicians and watched by a small crowd huddled under the shade of a tent. In the foreground a Kalmyk archer, his quiver by his side, has turned away from the entertainment and placed his arm around the lady sitting beside him. The aquatint version of the present drawing was one of the works which Le Prince exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1769.

The theme of Russian peasants at leisure, and more specifically music and dance were common themes in Le Prince’s work.

This drawing seems to be set on the outskirts of a Russian village, with a wooden church dominating the background. A long plank of wood has been balanced on a rock to create a makeshift seesaw, which has sent a young girl soaring into the air. In front of them two small children struggle to pull a further three along on a sled.