Anne Vallayer Coster: Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette [Hardcover]

Eik Kahng (Author), Anne Vallayer-Coster (Author), Marianne Roland Michel (Author), Colin Bailey (Author), Claire Barry (Author), Melissa Hyde (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2002

Anne Vallayer-Coster (1744-1818) was one of the most talented still-life painters of the French school. Her exquisite paintings, today located in some of the world's finest museums, were admired and collected by many of her contemporaries, including Marie Antoinette, who became the artist's most important patron. This illustrated volume is devoted to Vallayer-Coster. It presents an array of the artist's still-life works, along with three royal portraits from the collection of Versailles and a pastel of Marie Antoinette. The authors draw on research to examine Vallayer-Coster's relationship with landscape painter Joseph Vernet; her response to her immediate predecessor, still-life painter Jean-Simeon Chardin; her role with contemporary collectors of her art; and her place in the larger context of the 18th-century art world. The work also includes archival and conservation findings and an illustrated index of extant paintings by Vallayer-Coster.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This catalog of the first exhibition devoted to painter Anne Vallayer-Coster (1744-1818) includes 175 color and 50 black-and-white reproductions as well as essays by scholars concerning various aspects of her work. As one of the three women artists admitted to the French Academy in the 18th century, Vallayer-Coster was best known for her still-life and flower paintings. A number of these works were engraved, and others formed the basis for floral decorations on porcelain and tapestries of the period. As demonstrated by Kahng (curator, Walters Art Museum, Baltimore), Vallayer-Coster's still lifes provoke comparisons with Chardin but maintain a vibrancy and charm of their own. Scholar Colin B. Bailey discusses Vallayer-Coster's popularity among 18th-century collectors, including Marie-Antoinette herself, and an excellent essay by Melissa Hyde chronicles women's involvement in the 18th-century world of art and letters through art making, patronage, and writing. This volume, the only recent title devoted solely to this artist, has lovely illustrations and thorough documentation. Recommended for all academic and museum libraries. [The exhibition will travel from Washington, DC, to Dallas, New York City, and France.-Ed.]-Sandra Rothenberg, Framingham State Coll. Lib., M.
--Sandra Rothenberg, Framingham State Coll. Lib., MA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Publisher

This gorgeous volume accompanies the first comprehensive exhibition of Vallayer- Coster's paintings. Organized by the Dallas Museum of Art, the show is on view at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., from June 30 to September 25, 2002; then travels to the Dallas Museum of Art from October 13, 2002 to January 5, 2003; the Frick Collection in New York City from January 21 to March 23, 2003; and the Musée des Beaux Arts in Nancy, France, from April 10 to June 23, 2003. Published in association with the Dallas Museum of Art

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Dallas Museum of Art; 1ST edition (July 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300093292
• ISBN-13: 978-0300093292
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 9.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #412,203 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #34 in Books > Arts & Photography > Painting > Still Life

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent, October 12, 2008

By 

Graydon Parrish "painter" (New York) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Anne Vallayer Coster: Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette (Hardcover)

One of the best books on an under-appreciated 18th century still life artist. The article by Eik Kahn is useful to fine artists and describes various approaches and outlooks from the period. The rest of the book is also well written and researched. It should be in every painter's library.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Anne Vallayer Coster: Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette, July 2, 2007

By 

Luis M. Gallinat - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Anne Vallayer Coster: Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette (Hardcover)

Exelent book with great ilustrations, simply a must for the people that loves still life paintings.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Unknown!, February 9, 2011

By 

P. Scibilia "rococo artist" (Savannah,Ga.) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Anne Vallayer Coster: Painter to the Court of Marie Antoinette (Hardcover)

This is a fine presentation of an incredible artist. I find it quite sad that soooooo many great female artist are not given their much deserved recognition in this great tradition of painting.