Roger de Piles in The Principles of Painting, 1708...
Roger de Piles and the Nature of Painting
Melville Holmes
“ The essence and definition of painting is, the imitation of visible objects, by means of form and colours: Wherefore the more forcibly and faithfully painting imitates nature, the more directly and rapidly does it lead us to its end; which is, to deceive the eye; and the surer proofs
does it give us of its true idea.”
Roger de Piles in The Principles of Painting, 1708...
R
oger de Piles( 1635 – 1709) was one of the outstanding luminaries in the history of art theory, in the company of such notables as Leon Battista Alberti, Denis Diderot, John Ruskin, and Clive Bell. In the annals of art criticism his thinking on the essential nature of painting is thought to prefigure modern art criticism. He is most famously known today for two things:
1) His prevailing role in the quarrel that erupted in the French Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in the late 17th century over the primacy of Drawing vs. Color in painting
2) His curious( also called“ infamous” and even“ playful”) addendum to his book of 1708, The Principles of Painting, where he offers a method of ranking the works of“ the most noted painters” by a numerical rating system, his“ Balance of Painters. Here, after a short explanation, he selects 57 artists, some very well known today and others virtually forgotten, and ranks them by means of four criteria, Composition, Drawing, Color, and Expression, with a maximum of 20 points for each category.
Some background will help place the unique contributions of de Piles in context. Born into a distinguished family in Clamecy in central France, de Piles received his early education in the surrounding region before moving to Paris around 1651 to study philosophy, followed by three years of theology. After this he studied drawing under Claude François( Frère Luc Recollet), during which time he made a French translation of Charles du Fresnoy’ s Latin poem,“ The Art of Painting.” In 1662 he became the tutor of the young Michel Amelot, son of Charles Amelot, the President of the King’ s Grand Council, and would be closely attached to that family for many years.
Roger de Piles Self Portrait( 1704), engraved by Bernard Picart after a lost painting by Roger de Piles Photo: Yale University Art Gallery
After the death of Charles, his widow gave de Piles a considerable sum of money that would render him financially set for life. In 1673 his Dialogue on Coloring was published. That same year Madame Amelot sent her son on a Grand Tour of Italy, with Roger de Piles as his companion, a journey that would last 14 months and would immerse them in the treasures of Italian
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