Jacques-Louis David – rebel with a cause

Jacques-Louis David was one of the most influential painters during the French Neo-classical period, when the playful and voluptuous Rococo style saw a decline. But it is hard to mention his artistic merits without also considering his political actions before and after the French Revolution.

Born into a prosperous family in 1748, David was sent to learn painting from the well-connected Joseph-Marie Vien. This led to his acceptance by the Académie Royale and, after five attempts to win the Académie’s Prix de Rome, David went to Italy in 1775 with Vien’s assistance. During five years there, he saw Italian masterpieces, was influenced by the works of Raphael and visited Rome, the home of classicism.

Returning to Paris, David submitted two paintings to the 1781 Salon, but received a hostile response – except from his contemporaries. However, recognition did come in the form of the grant of lodgings at the Louvre, a mark of privilege offered by the king.

A few years later, returning to Rome with his wife, David painted Oath of the Horatii in 1784. With strong political overtones, the depiction of an oath between a father and three sons implies unification of the state and the strong men and swords imply a battle is on the way.

Oath of the Horatii (1784)