Anton Raphael MENGS
Oeuvres complètes d'Antoine Raphaël Mengs, premier peintre du roi d'Espagne, contenant différents traités sur la théorie de la peinture
A l'hôtel de Thou|à Paris 1786|25.50 x 20 cm|deux volumes reliés
First French edition, translated from Italian by M. Jansen (the work was indeed first published in Italian by Bodoni).
Near-contemporary full sheep bindings with smooth spines, bronze title and volume labels. Handsome copy.
The work begins with memoirs on the life and works of Mengs (1728-1779) by Chevalier d'Azara and a notice on Mengs's paintings, followed by the painter's treatises on painting, covering beauty, taste, technical aspects of painting as well as various celebrated painters (Raphael, Correggio, Titian). The preface contains a paragraph by Klopstock (the German editor) and Fuessli. Court painter to the King of Poland, he joined the Spanish court at the behest of Charles III, King of Spain; his paintings, quite early in the neoclassical taste (see his Cleopatra), secured him fame and wealth, and the writings he left on painting and the arts are marked by research and subtlety.
Near-contemporary full sheep bindings with smooth spines, bronze title and volume labels. Handsome copy.
The work begins with memoirs on the life and works of Mengs (1728-1779) by Chevalier d'Azara and a notice on Mengs's paintings, followed by the painter's treatises on painting, covering beauty, taste, technical aspects of painting as well as various celebrated painters (Raphael, Correggio, Titian). The preface contains a paragraph by Klopstock (the German editor) and Fuessli. Court painter to the King of Poland, he joined the Spanish court at the behest of Charles III, King of Spain; his paintings, quite early in the neoclassical taste (see his Cleopatra), secured him fame and wealth, and the writings he left on painting and the arts are marked by research and subtlety.
€1,200