Offered by Galerie de Frise
REQUEST INFORMATION
Jacques STELLA
(Lyon, 1596 - Paris, 1657)
Judith and Holofernes
Oil on slate
H. 23.5 cm; W. 24 cm
Son of François Stellaert, a painter of Flemish origin who moved to Rome in 1576 and then to Lyon, Jacques Stella was born in Lyon in 1596. Around 1619, he left for Florence, where he worked for Cosimo II de' Medici. Here, he probably already met Nicolas Poussin and Jacques Callot. Stella left Florence for Rome in 1622 or 1623, where he befriended Poussin, who had arrived in 1624. Stella became famous in the world of Italian art lovers for his small paintings on precious supports: marble, agate, lapis, slate, as well as for his engravings and drawings. In 1634, having received offers from the King of Spain, he left Rome in the retinue of the French ambassador Marshal de Créqui. He passed through Venice, stopping in Lyon in 1635, then Paris. Retained by Richelieu, who took him into his service, he settled in the capital of the kingdom. Showered with favors, he enjoyed lodgings in the Louvre and a considerable pension. He was later awarded the collar of the Order of Saint-Michel, a rare honor for an artist.
