.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
As a painter of landscapes, Claude-Louis Chatelet worked in gouache and watercolor as well as in oil. Many of his works record the parks and gardens of the residences, such as the Château de Maupertuis, that were being built outside Paris in the second half of the 18th century, and they were much admired: 'This artist, who died at a young age in the first days of the Revolution, already had a great reputation; his works were very rare and highly sought after....' (Charles Eli in the catalogue of the Brian sale, 12 December 1808).
The present work depicts the pyramid at the Château de Maupertuis, the seat of the Montesquiou family from the 17th century. In the 1760s the estate underwent considerable expansion under the direction of Marquis Anne-Pierre de Montesquiou, who entrusted much of the work to the young architect Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. From 1766, Ledoux created an impressive architectural ensemble that included a château, a chapel, an orangery and a pheasantery. Although Ledoux won other important commissions such as the Montfermeil château near Paris for President Hocquart and the Benouville château in Normandy for the Marquis de Livry, the significance of the work he did for Montesquiou should not be underestimated in the development of his career, especially given his patron's social influence in Paris.
Although the two pavillions in the background of the present painting, which correspond with the entrance to the château, are by Ledoux, the pyramid is by Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart (1739-1813), as shown by the existence of a number of designs for it in the possession of his descendants. The two architects were put into direct competition in 1784 when the Marquis asked them both to submit designs for the fabriques and follies for the gardens of the estate. Brongniart was declared the winner and created the architectural decoration that included the pyramid in the present painting.
The Montesquiou family was forced to abandon the estate during the Revolution, but when they returned there afterwards, the château was no longer standing. However it is thanks to contemporary accounts like that of Vigée Le Brun's Les Souvenirs and paintings such as the present work that some record of these lost estates has been preserved.
The present work depicts the pyramid at the Château de Maupertuis, the seat of the Montesquiou family from the 17th century. In the 1760s the estate underwent considerable expansion under the direction of Marquis Anne-Pierre de Montesquiou, who entrusted much of the work to the young architect Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. From 1766, Ledoux created an impressive architectural ensemble that included a château, a chapel, an orangery and a pheasantery. Although Ledoux won other important commissions such as the Montfermeil château near Paris for President Hocquart and the Benouville château in Normandy for the Marquis de Livry, the significance of the work he did for Montesquiou should not be underestimated in the development of his career, especially given his patron's social influence in Paris.
Although the two pavillions in the background of the present painting, which correspond with the entrance to the château, are by Ledoux, the pyramid is by Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart (1739-1813), as shown by the existence of a number of designs for it in the possession of his descendants. The two architects were put into direct competition in 1784 when the Marquis asked them both to submit designs for the fabriques and follies for the gardens of the estate. Brongniart was declared the winner and created the architectural decoration that included the pyramid in the present painting.
The Montesquiou family was forced to abandon the estate during the Revolution, but when they returned there afterwards, the château was no longer standing. However it is thanks to contemporary accounts like that of Vigée Le Brun's Les Souvenirs and paintings such as the present work that some record of these lost estates has been preserved.