The Galerie du Temps at the Louvre-Lens A unique presentation of ...

Art and power in France in 1830
16. Louis-François Bertin by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
(1780-1867), 1832.
H. 1.16 m. ; W. 0.95 m.
Musée du Louvre, Department of Paintings, RF 1071
© 2010 Musée du Louvre / Angèle Dequier
Term of loan for display at the Louvre - Lens: 1 year
The character and social status of Louis-François Bertin, who
founded the Journal des Débats and backed Louis-Philippe,
come to the fore in this painting. Ingres created the archetype
of the triumphant bourgeoisie of the 1830s. This is the most realistic portrait he ever painted; the messyhaired
sitter looks as though he has just been interrupted while in mid-conservation. This painting is also
striking because of the amazingly sharp details.
A press baron
A stocky, gray-haired man of about 60 sits gazing intensely at the viewer. His facial expression, casual pose,
and hands resting on his knees radiate a barely contained energy; he looks poised to spring into action. This
portrait perfectly reflects the character and social status of Louis-François Bertin (1766-1841), journalist,
businessman, and owner of the Journal des Débats. He backed the idea of a constitutional monarchy, which
landed him in jail under the First Empire, and opposed the regime of Charles X. When Ingres painted this
portrait, during the July Monarchy, Bertin's newspaper, which was read by the liberal bourgeoisie, supported the
government of Louis-Philippe, whom he had helped to put on the throne.
"The Buddha of the bourgeoisie"
Ingres painted this portrait in 1832 during his Paris period, which lasted from 1824 to 1834. The revolutionary
of 1806 was henceforth deemed David's successor, the defender of tradition against Delacroix and the
Romantics. This was when the artist produced his painting manifestos, such as The Apotheosis of Homer
(Louvre), but only a few portraits; he did most of them during other periods in his life. At the Salon of 1833,
Ingres exhibited this picture next to an older portrait, Madame Duvauçay (1807, Chantilly, Musée Condé), to
show how his style had evolved. The sitter's pose drew barbs from some critics, who found it ridiculous and
vulgar. Later, Bertin's daughter wrote, "My father looked like a great lord; Ingres turned him into a fat farmer."
This work, which is the most famous male portrait Ingres painted, is often considered the embodiment of a
social class. Indeed, Édouard Manet described Bertin as "the Buddha of the self-satisfied, well-to-do, triumphant
bourgeoisie."
Photographic truthfulness
This is probably Ingres's most realistic painting. Unlike his other portraits, such as Caroline Rivière (Louvre),
the sitter's pose is not based on older pictures or Raphael's portraits. The artist captured Bertin as he observed
him in mid-conversation at home one day. Ingres achieved painstakingly crisp precision in the details, the
imperfections of the face, and the tousled hair; the reflection of a window on one of the chair's arms recalls the
art of Jan Van Eyck. This work does not have the abstract contours of La Grande Odalisque (Louvre), but the
malleable anatomy that the artist enjoyed depicting is in evidence, and his fondness for curves can be seen in
Bertin's arm and the chair's backrest. Lastly, Ingres compressed the painting's space, as he often did.
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