Sold at Auction: Jean Siméon Chardin

(b Paris, France, 1699; d Paris, 1779) French painter. Chardin worked with Pierre-Jacques Cazes and Noel-Nicolas Coypel before beginning his formal artistic training at the Academy of Saint Luc in 1724. He explored the genre of still life at the academy and became a member of the Royal Academy of Painting in 1728. In 1733 he completed his first figure painting, Woman Sealing a Letter. Chardin’s most frequently depicted subject matter featured family life and half-figures of young men and women. In the 1740s Chardin was at the height of his popularity and fame. His work is known for its bare simplicity. Instead of depicting heavy detail and decoration, he focused on conveying light, form and color in his subjects. Chardin’s work is unique to the period because his simple, ordinary, realistic scenes contrast with the typically lavish tastes of the 18th century.