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Lot Essay
IN THE YEARS AROUND 1785-90, MARGUERITE GRARD PAINTED A SERIES OF SMALL PORTRAITS, A FEW OF WHICH DEPICT ARTISTS (ARCHITECTS, MUSICIANS) AND POLITICAL FIGURES, WHILE THE SUBJECTS OF OTHERS ARE UNIDENTIFIED. ALL OF THESE PORTRAITS ARE EXECUTED ON LITTLE WOODEN PANELS OF APPROXIMATELY THE SAME DIMENSIONS AS THE PRESENT PAINTING. ALTHOUGH EACH SITTER IS INFORMALLY PORTRAYED IN WHAT RESEMBLES A DOMESTIC SETTING, THE PORTRAITS MUST HAVE BEEN POSED IN GRARD'S STUDIO, AS SOME OF THE FURNISHINGS REAPPEAR IN OTHER WORKS BY THE ARTIST. FOR EXAMPLE THE SMALL TABLE WITH THE GILDED SWAGS ON WHICH DR. THIERY LEANS IS ALSO FOUND IN GRARD'S PORTRAIT OF A GENTLEMAN (FORMERLY WITH DIDIER AARON; SEE AROUND 1800, 1986, NO. 18), THE PORTRAIT OF A MAN IN HIS STUDY (FORSYTH WICKES COLLECTION, MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, BOSTON), AND IN THE PORTRAITS OF MONGINS DE ROQUEFORT, A DEPUTY IN THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY (MUSE FRAGONARD, GRASSE), AND LEDOUX, THE ARCHITECT OF LOUVECIENNES (MUSE COGNACQ-JAY, PARIS). SARAH WELLS ROBERTSON, IN HER STUDY OF GRARD'S CAREER (MARGUERITE GRARD, 1761-1837, UNPUBLISHED DOCTORAL DISSERTATION, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, 1978) BELIEVES THIS GUERIDON IN ALL LIKELIHOOD TO BE THE TABLE 'PEINT EN BRONZE' LISTED IN THE FAMILY INVENTORY OF 1826 AS LOCATED IN THE ARTIST'S STUDIO.
THE INSCRIPTION ON THE BACK OF THE PRESENT PAINTING, AS WELL AS THE TITLE OF THE LITTLE BOOK HELD BY THE SITTER, PERMITS US TO IDENTIFY GRARD'S MODEL. FRANOIS THIERY WAS BORN IN NANCY OR TULLE - THE BIOGRAPHIES DO NOT AGREE - IN 1719 AND RECEIVED HIS MEDICAL DEGREE IN PARIS AROUND 1740. HE TRAVELED WIDELY TO STUDY THE EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT CLIMATES ON HEALTH AND DISEASE, SPENDING THREE YEARS IN SPAIN WHERE HE WORKED WITH DON GASPAR CASAL RESEARCHING PELLAGRA; HE PUBLISHED A TREATISE ON THIS CHRONIC NERVOUS DISORDER IN 1755. INCLUDED AMONG HIS DIVERSE PAPERS ON EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINES ARE A 1755 STUDY OF THE FATAL EFFECTS OF 'SIEUR AILHARD'S PURGATIVE'; HIS 'RELATIONS D'UN VOYAGE FAIT A BAREGES. . . LETTRES M. VANDERMONDE CONCERNANT L'USAGE D'UN REMDE DANGEREUX' PUBLISHED IN THE JOURNAL GNRAL DE MDICINE IN 1759; AND STRUCTURE ET MALADIES DU TISSU CELLULAIRE OF THE SAME YEAR.
IN 1787 HE PUBLISHED LA VIE D'HOMME RESPECTE ET DFENDUE DANS SES DERNIERS MOMENTS - THE BOOK HE HOLDS IN GRARD'S PAINTING, AND THE PROBABLE DATE OF THE PORTRAIT'S EXECUTION. HE FOLLOWED THAT IMPORTANT WORK IN 1789 WITH THE OPPORTUNELY TIMED LES VOEUX D'UN PARTRIOTE SUR LA MDECINE EN FRANCE, WHERE HE EXPLAINED HIS IDEAS FOR DISSEMINATING WELL-TRAINED DOCTORS THROUGHOUT THE KINGDOM, FOR PERFECTING THE ART OF MEDICINE, AND FOR ESTABLISHING A NATURAL HISTORY OF FRANCE. HIS LAST BOOK, OBSERVATIONS DE PHYSIQUE ET DE MDECINE FAITES EN ESPAGNE, PUBLISHED IN 1791, REVISITS SOME OF THE EARLIER WORK THAT HE DID IN SPAIN.
THIERY WAS A FAMOUS AND DISTINGUISHED DOCTOR WITH A PROMINENT CLIENTELE. BUT HE IS OF THE GREATEST INTEREST TODAY FOR HIS RELATIONS WITH THE MOST ADVANCED SCIENTIFIC AND ENCYCLOPEDIC CIRCLES OF HIS TIME. FOR EXAMPLE, THIERY BEGAN A STEADY CORRESPONDENCE IN 1736 WITH THE CELEBRATED SWISS ANATOMIST HALLER, AND THEIR LIVELY LETTERS - WHICH ELUCIDATE THE PRESSING MEDICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ISSUES OF THE DAY - ARE ALSO SPRINKLED WITH MENTIONS OF ROUSSEAU AND 'SON BON ET ANCIEN AMI' JUSSIEU, DISCUSSIONS OF THE ENCYCLOPDIE IN 1752 - THE YEAR AFTER IT FIRST APPEARED - AND PRAISE OF DIDEROT AS EARLY AS 1756.
THE INSCRIPTION ON THE BACK OF THE PRESENT PAINTING, AS WELL AS THE TITLE OF THE LITTLE BOOK HELD BY THE SITTER, PERMITS US TO IDENTIFY GRARD'S MODEL. FRANOIS THIERY WAS BORN IN NANCY OR TULLE - THE BIOGRAPHIES DO NOT AGREE - IN 1719 AND RECEIVED HIS MEDICAL DEGREE IN PARIS AROUND 1740. HE TRAVELED WIDELY TO STUDY THE EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT CLIMATES ON HEALTH AND DISEASE, SPENDING THREE YEARS IN SPAIN WHERE HE WORKED WITH DON GASPAR CASAL RESEARCHING PELLAGRA; HE PUBLISHED A TREATISE ON THIS CHRONIC NERVOUS DISORDER IN 1755. INCLUDED AMONG HIS DIVERSE PAPERS ON EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINES ARE A 1755 STUDY OF THE FATAL EFFECTS OF 'SIEUR AILHARD'S PURGATIVE'; HIS 'RELATIONS D'UN VOYAGE FAIT A BAREGES. . . LETTRES M. VANDERMONDE CONCERNANT L'USAGE D'UN REMDE DANGEREUX' PUBLISHED IN THE JOURNAL GNRAL DE MDICINE IN 1759; AND STRUCTURE ET MALADIES DU TISSU CELLULAIRE OF THE SAME YEAR.
IN 1787 HE PUBLISHED LA VIE D'HOMME RESPECTE ET DFENDUE DANS SES DERNIERS MOMENTS - THE BOOK HE HOLDS IN GRARD'S PAINTING, AND THE PROBABLE DATE OF THE PORTRAIT'S EXECUTION. HE FOLLOWED THAT IMPORTANT WORK IN 1789 WITH THE OPPORTUNELY TIMED LES VOEUX D'UN PARTRIOTE SUR LA MDECINE EN FRANCE, WHERE HE EXPLAINED HIS IDEAS FOR DISSEMINATING WELL-TRAINED DOCTORS THROUGHOUT THE KINGDOM, FOR PERFECTING THE ART OF MEDICINE, AND FOR ESTABLISHING A NATURAL HISTORY OF FRANCE. HIS LAST BOOK, OBSERVATIONS DE PHYSIQUE ET DE MDECINE FAITES EN ESPAGNE, PUBLISHED IN 1791, REVISITS SOME OF THE EARLIER WORK THAT HE DID IN SPAIN.
THIERY WAS A FAMOUS AND DISTINGUISHED DOCTOR WITH A PROMINENT CLIENTELE. BUT HE IS OF THE GREATEST INTEREST TODAY FOR HIS RELATIONS WITH THE MOST ADVANCED SCIENTIFIC AND ENCYCLOPEDIC CIRCLES OF HIS TIME. FOR EXAMPLE, THIERY BEGAN A STEADY CORRESPONDENCE IN 1736 WITH THE CELEBRATED SWISS ANATOMIST HALLER, AND THEIR LIVELY LETTERS - WHICH ELUCIDATE THE PRESSING MEDICAL AND SCIENTIFIC ISSUES OF THE DAY - ARE ALSO SPRINKLED WITH MENTIONS OF ROUSSEAU AND 'SON BON ET ANCIEN AMI' JUSSIEU, DISCUSSIONS OF THE ENCYCLOPDIE IN 1752 - THE YEAR AFTER IT FIRST APPEARED - AND PRAISE OF DIDEROT AS EARLY AS 1756.