TROY, Jean-François de

French painter and tapestry designer, part of a family of painters, his father and teacher, François de Troy being a successful painter of fashionable portraits and Director of the Academy in Paris. His successful career was based initially on large historical and allegorical compositions ( Time Unveiling Truth, National Gallery, London, 1733), but he is now most highly regarded for his smaller and more spirited scenes of elegant social life. They are among the best of those that rode on the wave of Watteau’s success - indeed The Alarm (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1723) was attributed to Watteau in the 19th century. In 1738 he was appointed Director of the French Academy in Rome, and spent the rest of his life there.