Pierre-Charles Trémolières (1703-1739) - Lot 111

Pierre-Charles Trémolières (1703-1739) The Ascension of Christ, ca 1737 Oil on canvas 81 x 46.4 cm (curved at the top) This sketch was made in preparation for Pierre-Charles Trémolières' 1737 painting L'Ascension du Christ (oil on canvas, 580 x 255 cm) for the Saint Bruno des Chartreux church in Lyon, where it is still preserved. Born in Cholet in 1703, Trémolières was sent to Paris by his parents around 1719. His talent for drawing was noticed and he was placed under the protection of the Comte de Caylus. He entered the studio of Jean-Baptiste Van Loo, becoming his favorite pupil. He won the Second Grand Prix de Peinture of the Académie Royale in 1726. He left for Rome in 1728, as a boarder at the Académie de France, then directed by Nicolas Vleughels. In Rome, Trémolières trained by copying the masters, and in September 1734 married Isabelle Tibaldi, sister of the wife of painter Pierre Subleyras. On his way back to Paris, Trémolières stopped in Lyon for around eighteen months. Here, he carried out major religious commissions for local communities, notably L'Ascension and L'Assomption for the Carthusian monks, marking a transition in his style towards greater clarity, as evidenced by this modello. Trémolières returned to Paris in March 1736, where he was accepted by the Académie and made an Academician in 1737. He took part in the campaign to decorate the Hôtel de Soubise (commissioned by the Prince of Rohan). In poor health, he died prematurely in 1739, at the age of thirty-six. Trémolières, whose works are rare due to his short life, is still recognized today for the elegance of his compositions and his light, witty touch. A sketch of this composition is preserved at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (Black chalk and charcoal, faded, heightened with white, on gray-blue paper, 81 x 47.1 cm. (1985.102). We would like to thank Nicolas Lesur for identifying this painting.