Special Exhibition Review: Jean-Étienne Liotard

Jean-Étienne Liotard (1702-1789): Swiss Master, on view at New York's Frick Collection from June 13 to September 17, 2006, focuses on an artist I hadn't known before this past Spring but have since come to view with great appreciation and fondness. Liotard was an itinerant Swiss painter who was clearly no slave to current fashions, and appeared not to have cared less about that which was or wasn't "done" at the various court circles where he was commissioned to do portraiture. It's such a treat to meet artists who took or take their work, yet not themselves seriously, that I always become inclined towards deep, abiding good will and affection. So it is with "Liotard the Card" (that's what goes through my mind every time I see his remarkable, grinning self-portrait).

Splendid personality traits aside, Liotard was an incredibly skilled master draftsman and a painter possessed of daunting talent. Stan Parchin, Senior Correspondent for Museums and Special Exhibitions, has written a review of the Liotard show that is brimming with background information: why Liotard was born in Switzerland to French parents, where and with whom he studied and traveled, what influenced his wardrobe and how he came to be on friendly terms with royalty - despite his outlandish nickname.

Many thanks, as always, to Stan for this enlightening piece, and special thanks to Heidi Rosenau, Manager of Media Relations & Marketing at The Frick Collection. If memory serves, she had to email both Stan and I image files repeatedly, and did so with the utmost grace and good humor. If Heidi ever takes up painting, she'll be every bit as charming in that capacity as our new friend Liotard.

Image credit:

Jean-Étienne Liotard (Swiss, 1702–1789)
Madame Jean-Étienne Liotard (1728-1782), with Her
Eldest Son, Jean-Étienne, 1766
Black and red chalk and watercolor on cream paper,
heightened with color on the verso
24.5 x 19.6 cm (9 5/8 x 7 ! in.)
Musées d’Art et d’Histoire, Cabinet des Dessins
Photo: Bettina Jacot-Descombes