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    A Kingdom of Images: French Prints in the Age of Louis XIV, 1660–1715

    June 16–September 6, 2015

    Getty Research Institute

    An 18th century engraving depicting prints, letters, and playing cards strapped onto a board

    Events of the Year 1713 (detail), Dumesnil, 1714. Lent by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département des Estampes et de la Photographie. Photo credit: BnF

  • A 17th century print of Louis XIV, King of France and Navarre

    Louis XIV, King of France and Navarre, Robert Nanteuil after Nicolas Mignard, 1661. 2010.PR.60

  • Animation of hands opening a folding plate of the Facade of the Church of the Invalides from a bound volume of 17th century prints

    Opening the monumental print Facade of the Church of the Invalides by Pierre Lepautre after Jules Hardouin-Mansart, 1687. From a bound volume of 14 prints (Paris, 1687). 1392-604
    Note: Watch this print unfold on your desktop computer

  • A 17th century folding plate of the Church of the Invalides from a bound volume of prints

    Facade of the Church of the Invalides, Pierre Lepautre after Jules Hardouin-Mansart, 1687. From a bound volume of 14 prints (Paris, 1687). 1392-604

  • A comical 17th century print of a man baring his bottom and defecating in public

    Le Cul de La Fleur (La Fleur's Ass), Jean Lepautre and Pierre Lepautre, ca. 1680. Lent by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département des Estampes et de la Photographie. Photo credit: BnF

  • A 17th century color print of the royal family playing billiards in the palace of Versailles

    Third Apartment, Antoine Trouvain, 1694. From Appartements ou amusements de la famille royale à Versailles (1694–98), a suite of 6 plates. 2011.PR.20

  • Digitized book: Les plaisirs de l'Isle enchantée . . . (Paris: 1673 [1674]). Image between pp. 80–81: Second Day: The Performance of Molière's Princess of Elide, Jean Lepautre after Israël Silvestre, 1673. 84-B21384
    Note: Click page to turn

  • A 17th century print of skulls and a skeleton

    Vanitas with Skeleton: Death Is the Wages of Sin, Michel Mosin after Jean-Baptiste Corneille, ca. 1680. Lent by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département des Estampes et de la Photographie. Photo credit: BnF

  • Click to activate Zoom Image

    Procession of the King Accompanied by His Guards Crossing the Pont Neuf en Route to the Palace, Jan van Huchtenburg after Adam Frans van der Meulen, ca. 1670. 2012.PR.71

  • A 17th century color print of a woman in a colorfully patterned dressing gown

    Mademoiselle d'Armagnac in a Dressing Gown, Antoine Trouvain, 1695. Lent by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département des Estampes et de la Photographie. Photo credit: BnF

  • Bound volume of prints: Costumes français du 17e siècle (Paris, ca. 1688–89). Image pl. 18: Woman of Quality Playing the Harpsichord (Clavecin), Nicolas Arnoult, 1688. 2012.PR.39
    Note: Click page to turn

  • A 17th century print depicting a comical mix-up; Death and Cupid have swapped arrows and an old man and a young man have swapped fates

    The Exchange of Arrows between Death and Cupid, Unknown printmaker, possibly Pierre Landry after David I Vinckboons, ca. 1665–1701. 2012.PR.102

  • Bound volume of prints: Oeuvres de Jean Berain . . . (Paris, [1711?]). Image pl. 66: Tapestry Design, Jean-François Benard after Jean Berain, ca. 1690s. 87-B5224
    Note: Click page to turn

  • A 17th century print in which Louis XIV and his wife present their newborn son

    The King's Reception, Unknown printmaker, 1661. 2011.PR.7

  • Digitized Book: Jean Tronçon, L'entrée triomphante de Leurs Majestez.. . . (Paris, 1662). Image facing p. 29: The Obelisk in Place Dauphine, Jean Lepautre after Charles Le Brun, 1662. 87-B2431
    Note: Click page to turn

  • A 17th century print of an enormous vase with an elaborate ornamental border

    Monumental Vase in a Decorative Border, Jean Lepautre, ca. 1650–64. From an untitled suite of 4 prints. P860001

  • A 17th century print of a floral bouquet in a basket

    Flower Bouquet in a Basket, Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer, ca. 1665. From Plusieurs Paniers de Fleurs (Paris, n.d.), a suite of 4 prints. Lent by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département des Estampes et de la Photographie. Photo credit: BnF

  • A 17th century print of a tapestry design featuring Venus and Jupiter presiding over Vulcan

    Allegory of Fire, Sébastien Leclerc after Charles Le Brun, ca. 1670. Bound with Devises pour les tapisseries du roy: ou sont representez les quatre elemens et les quatre saisons de l'année . . . (Paris, 1668). 1391–388

A Kingdom of Images: French Prints in the Age of Louis XIV, 1660–1715

June 16–September 6, 2015, Getty Research Institute

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Under the longest reigning king in French history, Paris became the most important print producer in Europe, a position it maintained until the end of the 19th century. This extraordinary development was fueled by official policies that aimed to elevate the entire spectrum of the fine and decorative arts. Prints were at once a means of communication, a propaganda tool, and an art form in ever-increasing demand. Printmakers and print publishers produced hundreds of thousands of works on paper in a century that was as hungry for imagery as ours is today.

Propaganda was an essential characteristic of print production. But propaganda refers to more than images of the king’s likeness, victories, virtues, and royal festivals, which were most effectively disseminated through etchings and engravings. It also refers to a broader strategy promoted by the king himself: France would be a model for the rest of Europe. With the help of prints, allies and enemies alike would bear witness to the unmatched refinement of French technical skill, aesthetics, and taste. On the tercentenary of the death of Louis XIV, this exhibition demonstrates the significance of an art that attained unparalleled sophistication and influence.

This exhibition was organized by the Getty Research Institute in special collaboration with the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

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Thursdays at 2:00 p.m.
June 18–September 3, 2015

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