copperplate, paper, 37 x 26 cm
original copperplate engraving colored in watercolor in the period, 37 x 26 cm (PLATE REPLACEMENT); signed and dated on plate l.d. "B.Picart invenit 1731 (invenit - invented 1731)";
Under the composition, title in four languages. Classic mythological master engravings from the early 18th century.
Issued in a series of engravings accompanying the "Neueröffneter Musen-Tempel", a collection of mythological tales and stories (primarily from Ovid's "Metamorphoses"). The illustrations are of the highest quality, despite the fact that they appeared in 1733 in the fading light of Baroque tradition. The fabulous, ornate border patterns give the compositions a formal character reminiscent of framed paintings; indeed, Picart was inspired by many of his engravings from the works of Rubens' pupil, Abraham van Diepenbeeck, from the mid-17th century, but most of the designs are by Picart himself.
Bernard Picart , born on June 11, 1673 in Paris, where he lived rue Saint-Jacques , settled in 1711 in Amsterdam, where he lived on Kalverstraat and where he died on May 8, 1733. He was a designer and engraver. Trained by his father Étienne Picart (1632-1721), known as Roman, and by Benoît Audran le Vieux , and later by Sébastien Leclerc in 1689, he first resided in the Netherlands between 1696 and 1698. a brilliant achievement, a reputation as an engraver and designer. Equally adept with the chisel and the point, he made a number of fine subjects in which he skillfully combined the two processes and in which the fertility of invention and dexterity of his hand were admired. He enjoyed a well-deserved reputation when his father chose Amsterdam for his residence .
He was very industrious, hence the large number of works he produced. Most of them are engraved in his own drawings, which he made with special care and finish.
