Gilles Rousselet

Gilles Rousselet
Born1610
Paris, France
Died15 July 1686
Paris, France
Other namesAegidius Rousselet, Ægidius Rousselet, Edigious Rousselet
Years active1634–1678
EraBaroque
SpouseJudith Le Goux
Simplice Sicut Columbae, engraved by Gilles Rousselet, after Sébastien Bourdon's "Sainte Famille, sainte Elisabeth et saint Jean-Baptiste dans un paysage"
Sibille Tiburtine or Sibylle Tiburtine, from the series Douze Sybilles, engraved by Gilles Rousselet after Abraham Bosse

Gilles Rousselet, also known as Aegidius Rousselet (1610–1686)[1][2] was a French burin engraver, print dealer, and draftsman, active during the Baroque-era. He was one of the most skilled engravers of the seventeenth century and a member of the Académie.

About

Gilles Rousselet, born in 1610 in Paris, France.[3] His father was a bookseller and possibly a printmaker.[4] It is unknown with whom he studied engraving under, but his work was inspired by Abraham Bloemaert.[3][5]

Gilles Rousselet married in 1645 to Judith Le Goux in the Saint-Nicolas-des-Champs church, and together they had fourteen children. He was the father of sculptor, Jean Rousselet (1656–1693).[2]

A lot of Rousselet's engraving work was a reproduction of works by other artists.[6] During his career he reproduced work by artists, including Grégoire Huret, Claude Vignon, Jacques Stella, Laurent de La Hyre, Raphael, Pietro da Cortona, Guido Reni, Valentin de Boulogne, Nicolas Poussin, and his friend Charles Le Brun. Unlike Rousselet, many of the known engravers of the 17th century created their own original artworks and were held at higher esteem, such as Jacques Callot, Claude Mellan, Robert Nanteuil, and Israel Silvestre.[6]

The Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture had always considered printmakers and engravers inferior to painters, and starting in 1663, the first engravers were admitted, starting in April with François Chauveau.[4] On 7 August 1663 Rousselet was the second engraver to enter the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture.[4] Charles LeBrun had supported Rousselet's entrance to the Académie.[4] He exhibited his works at the Salons exhibition of 1664 and of 1673.[4]

Death and legacy

On 1678, Rousselet went blind and was no longer able to work.[4]

He died on 15 July 1686 in Paris, France, and was buried eleven days later.[3] On July 22, 1686, an inventory was made of his belongings, which included all of his prints and engraving plates.[7]

He was related to engraver Marie-Anne Rousselet.[8]

Collections

His work is included in the public museum collections at Harvard Art Museums,[9] the Metropolitan Museum of Art,[10] Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco,[11] the National Portrait Gallery, London,[12] Rijksmuseum,[13] National Gallery of Art,[14] the National Gallery of Victoria,[15] Minneapolis Institute of Art,[16] Art Gallery of New South Wales,[17] Victoria and Albert Museum,[18] Philadelphia Museum of Art,[19] National Gallery of Ireland,[20] among others.

References

  1. ^ "Gilles Rousselet". artnet.com. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Gilles Rousselet (1610–1686)". data.bnf.fr. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Rousselet, Gilles". Benezit Dictionary of Artists. 2011. doi:10.1093/benz/9780199773787.article.b00156981. ISBN 978-0-19-977378-7. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d e f A Kingdom of Images: French Prints in the Age of Louis XIV, 1660–1715. Peter Fuhring, Louis Marchesano, Remi Mathis, Vanessa Selbach (editors). Getty Publications. 2015. pp. 10–11, 24, 26. ISBN 9781606064504.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. ^ Rees, Abraham (1819). The Cyclopædia, Or, Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Literature. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown.
  6. ^ a b Castandet, Christophe (May 18, 2020). "L'oeuvre gravé de Gilles Rousselet, graveur parisien du XVIIe siècle". La Tribune de l'Art (in French). Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  7. ^ Meyer, Véronique (1985). "The Inventory of Gilles Rousselet (1610–1686)". Print Quarterly. 2 (4): 299–308. ISSN 0265-8305. JSTOR 41823695.
  8. ^ Bryan, Michael (1904). Bryan's Dictionary of Painters and Engravers, Volume 4. George Charles Williamson. Macmillan. p. 289. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  9. ^ "Gilles Rousselet, 1610 - 1686". Harvard Art Museums. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  10. ^ "Panthée, 1647". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  11. ^ "Gilles Rousselet". FAMSF Search the Collections. September 21, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  12. ^ "Gilles Rousselet". National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  13. ^ "Heilige Augustinus, Gilles Rousselet, after Charles Le Brun, 1620 – 1686". Rijksmuseum. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  14. ^ "La Retorique (Rhetoric)". National Gallery of Art (NGA). Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  15. ^ "Artists: Gilles ROUSSELET". National Gallery of Victoria (NGV). Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  16. ^ "The European Sibyl, Gilles Rousselet; Artist: after Claude Vignon; Printer: Pierre Mariette Le Fils". Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA). Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  17. ^ "David holding the head of Goliath by Gilles Rousselet, after Guido Reni". The Gallery of New South Wales. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  18. ^ "V&A Search the Collections: St. Francis in Ecstasy, Rousselet, Gilles". V and A Museum Collections. May 18, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  19. ^ "Collections Object: David Playing the Harp". Philadelphia Museum of Art. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  20. ^ "Online Collection: Porcia". National Gallery of Ireland. Retrieved May 18, 2020.