PARROCEL, Joseph

French painter, part of a family of painters and engravers. They were originally from Montbrisson in the Loire region, and they were one of the most numerous French artistic dynasties, from the 16th century producing 14 painters over 6 generations. They were most prominent in the late 17th century and the 18th. Joseph Parrocel and his son Charles Parrocel (1688-1752) were notable painters of battles and hunts. Joseph's nephew Pierre Parrocel (1670-1739) was a prolific painter of religious works, as was his nephew and pupil Etienne Parrocel (1696-1775), who spent his working life in Rome.

Joseph Parrocel studied with his father Barthélemy Parrocel (?1595-1660) and then with his elder brother Louis Parrocel (1634-1694). He went to Paris for four years to perfect his work and then, c. 1667, to Rome, where he became the pupil of the battle painter Jacques Courtois and was influenced by Salvator Rosa. He remained in Italy for eight years and stayed for a time in Venice, before returning to settle in Paris in 1675. He was approved (agréé) by the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in February 1676 and received (reçu) as a full member in November of the same year, presenting the Siege of Maastricht (Draguignan, Musée Municipal).

His painted oeuvreGLOSSARYThe complete body of works created by an artist. consists principally of military scenes, particularly battles, and he received numerous royal commissions. In the period 1685-88 he executed 11 paintings for the Salle du Grand Couvert at the château of Versailles (nine in situ; one in Tours, Musée des Beaux-Arts; one in Dijon, Musée des Beaux-Arts); in 1699 he painted the CrossingGLOSSARYthe area of a church where the nave is intersected by the transept. of the Rhine (Paris, Musée du Louvre) for the château of Marly, Yvelines, and in 1700 he executed the Fair at Bezons (Tours, Musée des Beaux-Arts), anticipating the fêtes galantes of Antoine Watteau. He was also the author of a number of hunting scenes (e.g. Aix-en-Provence, Musée Granet). His most important religious paintings were the May of Notre-Dame de Paris of 1694, St John the Baptist Preaching (Arras, Musée des Beaux-Arts) and St Augustin Succouring the Sick (c. 1703; Nantes, Musée des Beaux-Arts), which was intended for the monasteryGLOSSARYthe complex of buildings used by a community of monks. Among the main elements of the complex are the church, cloister, chapter house (used by the governing body), refectory (dining room) and dormitory (sleeping quarters). in the Place des Victoires in Paris. He also contributed battle scenes to the backgrounds of portraits by Hyacinthe Rigaud and by Gabriel Blanchard.

His technique was highly original in the context of his time; he employed a very free style of execution and used thick impastoGLOSSARYPaint applied in thick or heavy layers. and intense colours. He was also a prolific engraver, producing around 100 plates, among them 25 Mysteries from the Life of Jesus Christ and 40 Miracles from the Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Others were executed for the Missale parisiense of 1685, and some depicted military subjects.

Joseph Parrocel's pupils included the landscape painter François Sylvestre (1667-1738), his son Charles Parrocel and his nephews Ignace-Jacques Parrocel (1667-1722) and Pierre Parrocel.