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69 - Nicolas-Bernard LÉPICIÉ (Paris, 1735 – 1784) The Cellist, a …
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Estimate €5,000 - €6,000
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Description
Nicolas-Bernard LÉPICIÉ (Paris, 1735 – 1784) The Cellist, a presumed portrait of Martin Berteau Oil on canvas, tondo Diameter: 29.5 cm (Restored) The Cellist, a presumed portrait of Martin Berteau, oil on canvas, by N.-B. Lépicié D.: 11.61 in. Provenance: Collection of Mr Louis-Laurent Prault the Elder (1734–1806), printer to the King; His sale, Paris, 16 rue Taranne, Maître Poultier, 13–14 February 1807, lot 5; Collection of Hygin-Auguste Cavé (1796–1852), former Director of Fine Arts and of Palaces and Manufactories at the Ministry of State; His sale, Paris, 42 rue des Jeuneurs, Maître Ridel, 17 December 1852, lot 17; The collection of Joseph Fau, Paris, in 1860; His sale, Paris, Hôtel Drouot, Maître Pillet, 9 March 1874, lot 12; Collection of Gustave Rothan (1822–1890); His sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, Maître Chevallier, 29–31 May 1890, lot 167; Private European collection Exhibitions: Exhibition of paintings from the Old French School drawn from private collections, Paris, 1860, no. 205 Exhibition of 18th-century art, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, December 1883–January 1884, no. 91 Bibliography: Philippe Gaston-Dreyfus, “Catalogue raisonné of the paintings and drawings of Nicolas-Bernard Lépicié”, Bulletin de la Société d’Histoire de l’Art Français, 1922, p. 183, no. 92 Albert Pomme de Mirimonde, Musical Iconography under the Bourbons, Paris, 1977, p. 56 Particularly prized by 18th-century art lovers, Nicolas-Bernard Lépicié’s intimate genre scenes reveal his deep admiration for the painting of the Northern schools. Through this tondo, the artist invites us into a cellist’s study. Various shades of brown are rendered with a light, rapid brushstroke, conveying the scene’s modest atmosphere. The musician depicted sitting at his score, bow in hand, is thought to be Martin Berteau (1691–1771), the founder of the French school of cello. In addition to his role as a teacher, he published several treatises on his art and reinvented it by changing the position of the bow to bring out the instrument’s full range of harmonics. The subject of our work, its composition, as well as its brushwork and colour scheme, allow it to be compared with an oil on canvas held at the André Malraux Museum of Fine Arts in Le Havre1. This painting depicts a philosopher engrossed in study, his hand resting on a manuscript, in an interior as humble as that of our cellist. Another autograph version of this portrait (fig. 1), executed in red chalk on paper, recently appeared on the market (anonymous sale, New York, 30–31 January 2013). 1. Nicolas-Bernard Lépicié, Portrait of an Old Man or ‘Philosopher’, oil on canvas, 73 x 60 cm, Le Havre, André Malraux Museum of Fine Arts We would like to thank Professor Patrick Michel for kindly confirming the authenticity of this work following a visual examination on 18 May 2026. Nicolas-Bernard LÉPICIÉ (Paris, 1735 – 1784)
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About the sale The Rothschild taste, passed down through the generations: A pied-à-terre on the Champ-de-Mars
Auction location
Auction time 09/22/2026 at 2:30 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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