MATHERON Laurent Goya.

First edition of the first French work on Goya.

This is the first French book on Goya.

The text represents a new stage in the historiography of the artist, who was already known in France through isolated references, occasional articles and short essays on the painter's life and work. Matheon produced the first true biography of Goya. The work was intended for a public of French art lovers, including the Empress Eugénie. It is presented as a biographical account, and although it contains an essay on a catalogue, the focus is on the artist's life, in a narrative mode that already existed in art history. Indeed, Matheron recounts a multitude of anecdotes, standard narratives corresponding to other artists' biographies. The author is following in the long tradition begun by Vasari with his Lives of Artists. The work is also dedicated to Delacroix, a friend of the author with whom he had many discussions on art and Goya, as can be seen from their respective correspondence.

A magnificent copy with a majestic provenance.