The Obelisk
Hubert Robert
1787
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
255.6 × 223.5 cm (100 7/8 × 88 in.); Framed: 265.5 × 233.4 cm (104 1/2 × 91 7/8 in.)
Classification
oil on canvas
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
57049
About the Artist
Hubert Robert · 1733–1808
Hubert Robert, born on May 22, 1733, in Paris, emerged from a modest background; his father, Nicolas Robert, served the influential Choiseul family, whose patronage shaped the young artist's path. After completing his studies at the Jesuit Collège de Navarre in 1751, he entered the atelier of sculptor Michel-Ange Slodtz, who taught him design and perspective before encouraging a shift to painting....