Acquis à New-York, galerie Herbert Feist, 1978

Rennes, 2012, n^o51 (notice par Nicole Garnier) ;
Sceaux, 2013 (sans catalogue)

N. Garnier, Antoine Coypel (1661-1722), Paris, 1989, n°266, p.199, fig.133 ;
N. Garnier, Antoine Coypel (1661-1722), "Cahiers du dessin français", Paris, 1989, p.16, n°15, repr.

Laid down. Overall in very good condition. Slight staining/discolouration around the edges of the sheet. A tiny pinhole in the lower right corner. Otherwise red and black chalk strong and vibrant. Sold unframed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This red and black chalk study of Religion flanked by Hercules and Minerva is very close in terms of compositional layout to the frontispiece to Roger de Piles’ Abrégé de la Vie des Peintres (Paris 1699), engraved by Charles Simonneau, after a design by Antoine Coypel (fig.1).¹  In 1989 it was suggested by Nicole Garnier that the Adrien drawing was possibly the première pensée for this frontispiece.   Garnier, in her entry in the Rennes exhibition catalogue, discusses the similarities between the Adrien drawing and the Simonneau engraving in terms of the placement of figures and the setting.  Both represent a female figure seated on a pedestal, flanked by two figures, with a winged putto in the lower foreground.  Garnier rightly observes, however, that the iconography in the Adrien drawing differs significantly from that of the Simmoneau engraving.  In the engraved frontispiece, the female figure seated on the pedestal represents an allegory of painting, as is evident from the attributes that she holds – an artist’s paint palette in her left hand, and a canvas in her right – and the lateral figures that draw back the curtains are a flying angel and Mercury.  In the Adrien drawing, on the other hand, the female figure seated on the pedestal appears to represent Religion, as she is depicted with a cross above her head, and the figures either side of her are Hercules and Minerva, suggesting the subject of the drawing is Strength and Wisdom defending Religion.

In her monograph of 1989, Garnier publishes two other preparatory studies by Coypel for the frontispiece of the Abrégé de la Vie des Peintres.  One is a study in gouache, now in Worms, the other a rapid sketch housed at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. ²  Both of these drawings correspond more to Simmoneau’s engraving in terms of figural placement and iconography and leave little doubt that they are connected to the frontispiece design for Roger de Plies’ publication.

Coypel executed a number of studies representing Religion and the majority of these appear to be connected to the illustrations for a book entitled, Prières du Matin et du Soir pour tous les Jours de la Semaine, commissioned for Philip V, King of Spain.  The works were engraved by Nicolas Tardieu after Coypel’s desgins in 1714.  Two studies, by Coypel, depicting the figure of Religion, are in the collection of the Louvre.³

Garnier concludes that although Coypel clearly revisits here the design he made in 1699 for the frontispiece to Roger de Piles’ celebrated publication, the Adrien drawing must in fact be a preparatory study for one of the designs for the Livre de Prière, executed in 1714.

^1. N. Garnier, Antoine Coypel (1661-1722), Paris 1989, fig. 131

^2. N. Garnier, op. cit., figs. 130 and 132; Worms, Kunsthaus, inv. no. W 153 and Oxford, The Ashmolean Museum, inv. no. Album Scholz no. 41

^3. Rennes (2012), under cat. no. 51, figs 2 and 3