Paul Delaroche


Delaroche, Paul

 

(Hippolyte Delaroche). Born July 17, 1797, in Paris; died there Nov. 4, 1856. French painter.

A pupil of A. Gros, Delaroche depicted primarily dramatic episodes from medieval history in his paintings (The Children of Edward IV, 1831, the Louvre, Paris; The Assassination of the Due de Guise, 1834, the Condé Museum, Chantilly; Cromwell Opening the Coffin of Charles I, 1849, the Hermitage, Leningrad). In his creative work a naturalistic tendency—prosaic, humdrum, superficial treatment of historical events and a striving for an externally accurate rendition of the background, costumes, and details of everyday life—is combined with entertaining romantic subjects and idealization of kings, the nobility, and feudal mores. Delaroche also painted an enormous mural at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, depicting artists of the past (Hemicycle, 1837-41), as well as a number of portraits and religious compositions.

REFERENCE

Paul Delaroche: Exposition des oeuvres. Paris, 1857.

S. V. MOROZOVA