A. J. Defehrt (French, active 18th century)
after Charles le Brun (French, active 17th century-1765)
published by André le Breton (French, 1708-1779), Michel-Antoine David (French, c. 1707-1769), Laurent Durand (French, 1712-1763), and Antoine-Claude Briasson (French, 1700-1775)
Drawing: Expressions of Emotion (Wonder, Love, Veneration, Rapture), from Encyclopédie
INV-1482
A. J. Defehrt (French, active 18th century)
after Charles le Brun (French, active 17th century-1765)
published by André le Breton (French, 1708-1779), Michel-Antoine David (French, c. 1707-1769), Laurent Durand (French, 1712-1763), and Antoine-Claude Briasson (French, 1700-1775)1762/77
Drawing: Expressions of Emotion (Wonder, Love, Veneration, Rapture), from Encyclopédie
A. J. Defehrt (French, active 18th century) after Charles le Brun (French, active 17th century-1765) published by André le Breton (French, 1708-1779), Michel-Antoine David (French, c. 1707-1769), Laurent Durand (French, 1712-1763), and Antoine-Claude Briasson (French, 1700-1775) →etchingprint
Date
1762/77
Medium
Etching with engraving on cream laid paper
Dimensions
Image: 31.5 × 20.6 cm (12 7/16 × 8 1/8 in.); Plate: 35 × 22.5 cm (13 13/16 × 8 7/8 in.); Sheet: 40 × 26 cm (15 3/4 × 10 1/4 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
The Art Institute of Chicago
The French Academy president Charles Le Brun’s famous lecture on the subject of facial expressions likely took place in two sessions, on April 7 and May 5, 1668. He assimilated many textual sources, including Descartes, but it was the series of drawings he produced to illustrate the different expressions that had the most impact. These images were copied incessantly, but some difficulty remains in identifying them, especially for a modern audience. This sheet from the 1777 Encyclopédie uses Le Brun’s images of the stages of love from astonishment to rapture.
Also notable
Works in the same vein
Drawing: Expressions of Emotion (Hate or Jealousy, Anger, Desire, Physical Pain), from Encyclopédie
A. J. Defehrt (French, active 18th century) after Charles le Brun (French, active 17th century-1765) published by André le Breton (French, 1708-1779), Michel-Antoine David (French, c. 1707-1769), Laurent Durand (French, 1712-1763), and Antoine-Claude Briasson (French, 1700-1775)
Drawing: Expressions of Emotion (Laughter, Weeping, Compassion, Sadness), from Encyclopédie
A. J. Defehrt (French, active 18th century) after Charles le Brun (French, active 17th century-1765) published by André le Breton (French, 1708-1779), Michel-Antoine David (French, c. 1707-1769), Laurent Durand (French, 1712-1763), and Antoine-Claude Briasson (French, 1700-1775)