Henri-Pierre DANLOUX (Paris, 1753 - 1809)
Last moments of Mister Gabriel-Pierre-Louis du Rocher de Quengo (1761-1796)
Canvas
91,5 x 70,8 cm
Bibliography :
- R. Portalis, Henri-Pierre Danloux, peintre de portraits et son journal durant l'émigration (1735-1809), Paris, 1910, pp. 283-284.
- G. Walczak, Artistische Wanderer, Die Künstler(e)migranten der Französischen Revolution, Berlin, 2019, cited p. 264-265 and reproduced p. 203
Our painting illustrates the last moments of Gabriel-Pierre-Louis du Rocher de Quengo. Its political character forbids its public exhibition and it has little critical success. Only one figure study is known for this composition (private collection). Our painting is a sketch, made at size. Danloux obviously sought to free himself from his exclusive reputation as a portraitist and tried to treat a topical subject as a true painter of history. In 1795, the news of the failure of the Quiberon expedition spread to London. The surrender of the royalists on 3 Thermidor III on the promise of being treated as prisoners, then their indictment for high treason without regard for this commitment, threw the community of French immigrants of which Danloux was a part into despair.
When Madame de Quengo learns of her husband's death from his letter to her, she asks Danloux to paint a portrait of her husband according to her instructions and from a miniature. When she sees the modello, our painting, "she does not stop crying when she sees the canvas which represents her husband in a church of Vannes half destroyed. He is leaning on a piece of altar, writing to her for the last time". During a second visit, the older of her two daughters recognized her father and did not want to leave the portrait.
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