Photographed by Scott Wolff. Scanned from a slide. Color corrected by Pat Cagney.

Christ in the House of Simon

Artist Jean François de Troy (French, 1679 - 1752)

CultureFrench

Date1743

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions76 x 56 1/4 in. (193 x 142.9 cm)
Overall, Frame: 95 x 71 x 5 in. (241.3 x 180.3 x 12.7 cm)

InscribedSigned and dated upper right: "De Troy a Rome 1743"

Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.

Object number71.639

Collections

European Art before 1945

On View

Chrysler Museum of Art, Gallery 205

DescriptionThis is a large oil on canvas painting, with several classic figures in billowing fabrics populating the scene. The focus is a woman in the foreground is being blessed by Jesus. Eight figures and their billowing garments crowd the canvas behind the focus, two of which only their faces are visible over the shoulders of others. They are all seated around a table, and there is a great deal of action: mouths are open as if they are speaking, hands are gesturing, and cups are lifted up to be refilled. Christ, on the left, wears red and blue. The woman facing him in the center foreground wears blue; her long hair is down and loose. She has removed Christ's sandals and is anointing his feet, wiping the excess scented water with her hair. She gently cradles his foot and she sits on her knees before the eating crowd.

Label TextJean-François de Troy French, 1679-1752 Christ in the House of Simon, 1743 Oil on canvas In Jean-François de Troy’s paintings, devoting yourself to Christ is the pathway to redemption. In both pictures (here and far right), the busy, billowing, and brownish scenes fall away behind the unsullied colors and luminous quality of Jesus and the women bowing at his feet. The women’s bright expressions in particular draw them out of the earthly plane, showing the ecstasy of piety and faith. Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 71.639 ProvenanceThe artist, 1743-1752; the artist's estate sale, Paris, April 9, 1764; Frances Lady Ashburton; sale, Christie's, London, Dec. 16, 1949; Leger Fallery, London; Newhouse Galleries, New York, 1954; Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.; Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. to the Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, 1971. Exhibition History"Paintings from the Collection of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.," Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon; Seattle Art Museum; California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Minneapolis Art Institute; St. Louis City Art Museum; William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art, Kansas City; Detroit Institute of Arts; and Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, March 2, 1956 - April 14, 1957. (Exhib. cat. no. 62). "French Masters of the Eighteenth Century," Finch College Museum of Art, New York, Feb. 27 - April 7, 1963. (Exhib. cat. no. 6). "The Rococo Age," High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Oct. 5 - Dec. 31, 1983. (Exhib. cat. no. 9). "French Paintings from The Chrysler Museum," North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, May 31 - September 14, 1986; Birmingham Museum of Art, Alabama, November 6, 1986 - January 18, 1987. (Exhib. cat. no. 10). Published ReferencesBertina S. Manning. _Paintings from the Collection of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.: An Exhibition Organized by the Portland Art Museum, Oregon_. Portland: Portland Art Association. 1956. No. 62. Jefferson C. Harrison. _French Paintings from the Chrysler Museum_. The Chrysler Museum. 1986. Nos. 9-10 Jefferson C. Harrison. _The Chrysler Museum Handbook of the European and American Collections: Selected Paintings, Sculpture, and Drawings_. Norfolk, VA: The Chrysler Museum, 1991, 70, #52. Andrew Harvey. "God's Love Is Extravagant." _Venture Inward_. May/June 1999, p. 20-24, 45, color ill.. 20. Christophe Leribault, _Jean-François de Troy_ (Paris: Arthena, 2002), 382-383. Jeff Harrison, _Collecting with Vision: Treasures From the Chrysler Museum of Art_ (London: D. Giles Ltd., 2007), 36, fig. 29A. ISBN: 978-0-940744-72-1