François Beaucourt (1740–1794) is said to be the first native-born Canadian painter who studied in France with a professional reputation.[1][2] He was active mainly in the Province of Quebec.

François Beaucourt
Self-portrait c. 1773–1786
Born1740 (1740)
Died1794(1794-00-00) (aged 53–54)
OccupationPainter

Career edit

François Malepart Beaucourt was born in Laprairie, Quebec.[2] Paul Beaucourt, his father, was an amateur painter and military engineer. After he died, the family seems to have returned to France.[3] In 1773, Beaucourt married the daughter of his painting master, Joseph Camagne, in Bordeaux, afterwards painting in France and Russia.[2][3] He was accepted into the local academy in Bordeaux in 1784.[3] In Canada, after 1786, he painted a wide variety of subjects, mostly portraits, including a self-portrait in the National Gallery of Canada. In 1792, he worked in Philadelphia but returned to Montreal that year.[3] In 1794, he died in Montreal.[2] One critic speaks of his "decorative and light provincial rococo" manner.[3]

References edit

  1. ^ "François Beaucourt". National Gallery of Canada. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d MacDonald, Colin S. (1967). A Dictionary of Canadian Artists, vol. 1 (First ed.). Ottawa: Canadian Paperbacks Publishing. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e Reid, Dennis (2012). A Concise History of Canadian Painting (Third ed.). Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press. p. 37. Retrieved 11 June 2021.