Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Hyacinthe Rigaud's "Louis XIV", 1701

"Louis XIV" by Hyacinthe Rigaud, painted in 1701, is a portrait painted towards the end of Louis XIVs rule and symbolizes his absolute power.  During this time period France was about to undergo the French Revolution. Throughout his rule Louis the XIV increased the royal budget causing a collapse in the royal finances, this was one of the main catalyst for the French Revolution. Louis XIV lived a lavish life while the rest of France was in poverty. He created Versailles while a majority of France lived on the streets or in slums.  Louis XIV increased his power while limiting the power of the nobility by making them do random task that did not involve government decisions; this was one way he maintained absolute power of France. Louis XIVs corrupt way of leading brought France to a collapse (Pomarède).

Hyacinthe Rigaud used color, light, and dark to emphasize Louis XIV’s extravagant lifestyle. The red and gold drapery, blue fur robe, and royal jewels surrounding Louis XIV sets the scene of this painting. Rigaud uses rich colors for example dark blue, red and gold symbolizing Louis’s luxurious life. He has a sword strapped to his right hip, his crown placed on a stool to his right, and he is holding the royal scepter. These three objects represent three different parts of his rule: the sword shows his military power, the crown and scepter show his power over the kingdom and France. Louis XIV is noticeably brighter than the rest of the painting.  It seems as though a light is shining on him, representing that he is the focal point of this portrait and France. This portrait is almost overdone from the detailed background to the use of light and dark, reminding the viewers of Louis XIV’s overdone lifestyle and rule (Pomarède).

 This painting is a perfect representation of a ruler abusing his power. Even the fact that this portrait was painted shows Louis XIV abusing his power. While France’s economy was about to collapse and a majority of the population was in poverty Louis XIV was commissioning Rigaud to paint an expensive portrait of himself. The objects around Louis XIV illustrate his absolute rule over every part of France’s government. Also, he is surrounded by gold Fleur-de-lis that symbolizes France. This represents Louis XIV as the center and omnipotent ruler of France. This painting depicts a leader who only thought of being the sole ruler of France and nothing else (Pomarède).

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