Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) was one of the most prominent artists of the classical French Baroque era.
Nicolas Poussin Summary
- Born in Normandy, moved to Paris to become an artist against his father’s wishes
- Discovered the great masters in the royal collections
- Through the poet, Giambattista Marino, enjoyed some commissions from Marie de Medici
- Living in Rome from 1624, he won a commission to paint in St. Peter’s Cathedral
- First Painter of French King XIII in 1641, leaves because of overwork
- All his life worked as a loner, through financial calamity and success
- Like his contemporary and rival Claude Lorrain, he was born in France and moved to Italy where he lived until his death
- Although his Baroque contemporaries produced religious images, Poussin focused on classical and mythological scenes
- He was fascinated by Raphael’s works and drew influence from them in his paintings
- Poussin became the First Painter to the French King but left after disagreements with the court
- He never considered painting contemporary subjects
Nicolas Poussin’s Famous Paintings
- The Death of Germanicus (1627)
- The Inspiration of the Poet (1630)
- Et in Arcadia Ego (1638)
- Landscape with Saint John on Patmos (1630s)
- A Dance to the Music of Time (1640)
- Seven Sacraments (by 1640)
- The Miracle of Saint Francis Xavier (1641)
- The Judgement of Solomon (1649)
- Blind Orion Searching for the Rising Sun (1658)
- The Four Seasons (1664)