Jean Tassel

JEAN TASSEL (Langres, France, 1608-1667).
"Young man with lute".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Provenance: Christie's Monaco, December 4, 1993, lot number 22.
In good condition, with some minor retouching.
Measurements: 101 x 79 cm; 122 x 100 cm (frame).

This is a masterpiece of the French Baroque that condenses with depth and elegance the aesthetic and symbolic qualities of the 17th century. The woman playing the lute is compositionally related to an aristocratic genre tradition popularized by Bartolomeo Veneto, but Jean Tassel transfigures the young aristocrat playing the lute as a courtly exercise into a rapt, almost mystical woman. The girl, her head wrapped in a draped veil, raises her gaze towards a source of invisible light, as if listening to a celestial melody or responding to a divine inspiration. This elevated gaze, together with the light that caresses and shapes her face and her long-fingered hands, imbues the scene with a sacred atmosphere. Her serenity, her natural elegance, and the stillness that emanates from the whole are representations of the Baroque ideal of inner beauty and virtue expressed through art.

However, Tassel does not neglect the sensual representation of the canvases and flesh tones. The chiaroscuro bathes the scene in a tenebrist atmosphere, recalling the influence of Italian naturalism, which Jean Tassel may have absorbed on his travels to Rome. The dark background accentuates the sculptural volume of the figure, while directing all attention to her and her instrument. The young woman's russet-colored tunic, rich in folds and textures, contrasts with the earthy tones of the veil and lute, creating a subtle and refined chromatic harmony. In front of the young woman, an open book with sheet music rests on a brocade tablecloth.

The work could fit into the genre of "allegorie della musica", where the woman represents not only music as art, but also values such as contemplation and connection with the divine.

Jean Tassel was a French painter who specialized in mythological and genre scenes. He also did some portraits. He was born into a family of painters. In addition to his father Richard (who was also an architect), his grandfather Pierre, his great-uncle Adrien and his cousin Daniel de Chaumont were all painters. His mother, Marguerite (née Louys), was the daughter of a goldsmith. She most likely received most of her training in the family workshop. Later, he traveled to Rome where, in 1634, he is listed in the register of the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo. It is also known that he made a copy of Raphael's "The Transfiguration". It is unknown with which living Italian painters he may have been in contact, although, judging from his use of lighting effects, he was probably influenced by the recently deceased Caravaggio. Documents from 1636 indicate that he was in Avignon. He returned to Langres in 1647, when he married Simone Contet. He spent the rest of his life there and held some municipal offices. Despite his rural location, he kept abreast of artistic developments in Paris and shows some influence from the works of Simon Vouet and Laurent de La Hyre. A traditional story has it that Charles Le Brun invited him to Paris to assist in the creation of decorations commissioned by King Louis XIV, but Tassel refused, preferring to stay in Langres. Like his father, his workshop received commissions from all over the province. Clients in Dijon were especially numerous, as evidenced by the number of his paintings seized from the religious communities there during the Revolution. Of particular interest is a series of works executed for the Ursuline convent, under the direction of Catherine de Montholon (1568-1650). Most of these are now in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Dijon.