Civil Garb of the French Citizen
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
image: 12 1/8 x 7 1/16 in. (30.8 x 18 cm) plate: 12 15/16 x 7 1/2 in. (32.8 x 19 cm) sheet: 13 11/16 x 8 3/16 in. (34.8 x 20.8 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Harry G. Friedman, 1964
Accession Number
64.682.344
Tags
Art Historical Context
**Civil Garb of the French** (1794) is a striking etching collaboratively attributed to the Neoclassical master Jacques-Louis David and Baron Dominique Viv Denon. Created amid the turbulent final days of the French Revolution after the fall of Robespierre—this print captures the era's radical shift toward republican ideals. David, a fervent supporter of the Revolution and painter of iconic works like *The Death of Marat*, likely provided the design, while Den, a diplomat and artist known for his expedition sketches under Napoleon, executed the meticulous etching technique. Measuring about 12 x...
About the Artist
Jacques Louis David|baron Dominique Vivant Denon · 1748–1825
Jacques-Louis David (1748–1825), born in Paris on August 30 to a prosperous family, faced early tragedy when his father was killed in a duel around age nine. Raised by his mother's two architect uncles after his mother departed, David overcame family resistance to architecture and a facial tumor that hindered his speech and studies at the Collège des Quatre-Nations. He began training under the Roc...