Pictor in fabula

[[8:voir aussi Zeuxis et Parrhasios]] Zeuxis painted grapes, so that the birds flew at them to eat them. Apelles drew horses so such a likeness, that upon setting them before live horses, the live ones neighed, and began to kick at them, as being of their own kind.

Whoever shall read the tenth chapter of the thirty-fifth book of Pliny, which is nothing else but an encomium of this art and its artists, will find, that great princes, and the most dignified magistrates, thought painters to be their companions. Alexander was often found to be in Apelles’ painting room, as in his pallace; and to oblige him, parted with the beautifullest of all his mistresses, because he saw she had wounded Apelles’ heart [[4:suite: Protogène et Démétrios]]

There were both of them[[5:Apelles and Protogenes.]] well bred, and us’d to the company of persons of the best quality: Apelles particularly, had his house always full of them: Alexander the Great going often to see him work, and not disdaining to enter into discourse with him. This great prince was so fond of his works, and so persuaded of their immortality, that he publish’t an edict, forbidding any other painter to attempt the drawing of his picture, as being desirous that the idea of his person should be transmitted to posterity by the most skilful hand of his age. [[4:suite: Apelle et Campaspe]]

How much he lov’d Apelles, may be guess’d by the nobleness of the present he made him; for having, by Alexander’s command, drawn the naked picture of Campaspe, one of the most beautiful women of the time, and mistriss to that great prince, could not defend his heart against such charms, but fell desperately in love with her; which Alexander perceiving, very generously presented him with the lady, thinking a picture of his hand to be a sufficient exchange for so great a beauty: and ’tis to be presumed, that Apelles himself was of no ordinary merit, since the lady went willingly to his bed, and liv’d with him all his life in great felicity. ’Tis thought, that a famous piece of his, call’d, the Venus Dionæa, was the picture of that lady.

FRIEND — I observe, great painters have generally, either handsome wives, or beautiful mistrisses, and they are for the most part, extreamely sensible to beauty.

TRAVELLER — How can they be otherwise? Being such judges as they are, of feature and proportion; and having besides so strong an imagination, as they must have, to excel in their art.

Protogenes was his contemporary, and chief concurrent in the art; he liv’d in the Island of Rhodes; and the fame of his works was such, that it drew Apelles from home, to go and see the author of them. 

Their first interview was remarkable, and past in this manner: Apelles being landed at Rhodes, went straight to Protogenes his shop, or painting-room; where, finding none but an old woman, and a board newly prim’d, and prepared for painting, he, without saying anything, drew a line of admirable fineness of one colour, and so went his way; Protogenes being come home, the old woman shewed him the line; which he guess’d to be Apelles his work; and taking his pencil, drew another over that, finer than Apelles’s, and of another colour; telling the old woman, that if the man came back that drew the first line, she should tell him, that he that drew the second, was the man he look’d for. In a little time Apelles came, and seeing what Protogenes had done, took the pencil again, and with a stroke of a third colour, divided those two lines to subtely, that they were perfectly distinguishable, and so went his way. Protogenes coming home a little after, and seeing what he had done, confess’d himself vanquish’d; and presently ran to find out Apelles, whom he brought to his own house. This very piece, with these three lines, and nothing else in it, was afterwards carried to Rome, and long preserved among the rarities of the imperial palace.

FRIEND – This was a true meeting of two great artists, where skill and ingeniousness were equally eminent, and not envy and ill manners, as our artistes show one another. [[4:suite Apelle Alexandre]]

FRIEND — I have heard painters blamed for finishing their pieces to much: how can it be?

TRAVELLER — Very well: for an over diligence in that kind, may come to make the picture look too like a picture, and loose the freedom of nature. And it was in this, that Protogenes, who was, it may be, superiour to Apelles, in every part of painting; besides, was nevertheless outdone by him, because Protogenes could hardly ever give over finishing a piece. Whereas Apelles knew, when he had wrought so much as would answer the eye of the spectator, and preserve the natural. This the Italians call, working A la pittoresk, that is boldly, and according to the first incitation of a painters genius. But this requires a strong judgment, or else it will appear to the judicious, meer dawbing. 

FRIEND – What are his most famous works?

TRAVELLER – ’Tis hard to say; but if we may judge by the judgment of Augustus Cæsar, we must give the prize to that famous Venus coming out of the sea; which he consecrated in the temple of his father Julius; and which, from her action, was call’d by the Greeks, Anadiomene, and was extreamly celebrated by their poets; a part of it being spoil’d by time, there was no painter found that would offer to mend it; so great was the skill of Apelles, and the veneration that all artists had for his works.

Grotesk : It is properly that is found under ground in the ruines of Rome ; but it signifies more commonly a sort of painting that expresses odd figures or animals, birds, flowers, leaves, or such like, mingled together in one ornament or border.

The painter must also take care, that his scene be known by his piece at first view, by some ingenious invention to express the countrey: such was that of Nealces a Greek painter, who having drawn a sea-fight between the Ægyptians and the Persians, to express, that the action happened at the mouth of the Nile, made an ass drinking by the side of the river, and a crocodile ready to devour him; that being the proper animal of that river.

Most of the great philosophers of Græce travelled to Ægypt for their learning, witness Thales, Pythagoras, Democritus, Plato, and many others; and it is likely that the artists might do the same: but however the place where painting first settled, was Corinth, or Sicyone; there being some dispute about those two towns, because there happened to be eminent masters at them both much about the same time, to wit, Cleanthes at Corinth, and Telephanes at Sicyone; but the art in both theses places was but in its infancy; those painters contenting themselves with drawing the outlines of one colour, and shaddowing them within: some time after, Cleophantus of Corinth invented variety of colouring; and that same master came into Italy with Demaratus, the father of Tarquinius Priscus, king of the Romans.

Eupompus, who was contemporary to Zeuxis, was the author of this last subdivision, and was a very eminent painter; his chief schollar was Pamphilus the Macedonian, the first of that nation who applyed himself to the liberal arts; having studied geometry, without which, he used to say, no painter could excell: he drew the Victory of the Athenians at Phliante, and several other excellent pieces. He was likewise the first that taught his art for a set price; which was, a talent in ten years for every one of his schollars.

Friend — How much was a talent?

Traveller — There were talents of several countrys, and several values; but authors, when they mention talents, do mean the attick talent; and that, according to the calculation, was 190 l. English; which in ten years, was not quite twenty pound a year. But this custom which he brought up, was of great improvement to painting; for after his example, many masters set up, to teach young gentlemen to design.

Friend —  Did the gentry and nobility learn to design?

Traveller — The art itself was of that high value among the Græcians, that they thought it an imployment fit for none but ingenious minds and free spirits; and to that end, slaves and inferiour persons were forbid by the laws to apply themselves to it; insomuch, that it as been observ’d, that in the whole course of these arts of painting and statuary, never any slave was known to practise them.

Parrhasius outdid him likewise in vanity, and boasting of his own abilities, pretending amongst other things, to be descended from Apollo, and to have conversation with the gods; saying, that the Hercules he drew at Lindus, was the same that us’d to appear to him in his dreams; he was nevertheless overcome publickly by Timantes at Samos, to his great affliction; his particular character was, well finishing his pieces.

[[4:suit Apelle et Alexandre]] Demetrius chose rather to raise the siege of Rhodes, than to ruin a piece of Protogenes’s, which was painted upon the place where he could have best annoyed the town; and while his camp was before it, would often go to see Protogenes at work, in a little country-house he had within the precinct of the camp: and to show the breeding and wit of the painter, I cannot omit the answer Protogenes gave Demetrius, when he asked how he durst continue to work with so much tranquillity in the midst of the noise of arms, and the disorders of a camp? He civilly replied, “That he knew Demetrius had war with the Rhodians, but he was sure he had none with the liberal arts.”

Whatsoever it was, the piece was so admired, that it sav’d the city of Rhodes, when it was besieg’d by Demetrius, who could have carried it, if he would have fired a part of the town where his picture was; but he choose rather to raise the siege, than to destroy so fine a thing: some say, that Protogenes was yet alive, and working in his countrey-house in the suburbs of Rhodes, which were all possess by the army of Demetrius; who hearing that he work’d on quietly, sent to him to know the reason of so much security amidst so much danger: Protogenes made answer, that he knew his war was with the Rhodians, and not with the arts: which answer so pleased Demetrius, that he gave him a guard, and went often, during the siege, to see him work. And thus you see, art can protect its own sons in the midst of the greatest dangers.

TRAVELLER – But his most famous piece was his Ialyssus, which was consecrated in the Temple of Peace in Rome; ‘tis said, he spent seven years about it, and coloured it over four times, that it might the better resist the injuries of time. 

FRIEND – What was represented in this picture?

TRAVELLER – There has been great dispute about that in Antiquity, and since; some being of opinion, that therein was represented the city of Ialyssus, with its territory belonging to the Rhodians: but that seems improbable, because that Cicero always compares the Ialyssus of Protogenes with the Venus of Apelles; which would be very improper, if it were only a town: ‘tis therefore more probable, that it was the picture of the hero Ialyssus, founder of the town, and who was said to be son to Apollo. [[4:suite : Protogène et Démétrios]]

Timantes, on the contrary, was of a sweet, and modest temper, and was admirable in the expression of passions; as appear’d in his famous picture of the Sacrifice of Iphigenia; where he drew so many different sorts of sorrow upon the faces of the spectators, according to the concerns they had in that tragical piece of religion, that being at last come to represent Agamemnon’s face, who was the father to the virgin, he found himself exhausted, and not able to reach the excess of grief that naturally must have been showed in his countenance upon that occasion; and therefore he covered his face with a part of his garnment; saving thereby the honour of his art, and yet giving some idea of the greatness of the father’s sorrow. His particular talent lay, in giving more to understand by his pictures, than was really express’d in them; as he shewed in the picture of a Polyphemus asleep, in little; where to intimate his gigantick proportion, he feigned some satyrs who were measuring the highness of his thumb.

[[4:suit Zeuxis richesse]] He drew many pieces, but his chief was an Athlete, or Champion of the Olympick Games; with which he was so satisfied, that he wrote under it these words:

It may be envyed,

But not imitated.

Zeuxis painted grapes, so that the birds flew at them to eat them. Apelles drew horses so such a likeness, that upon setting them before live horses, the live ones neighed, and began to kick at them, as being of their own kind. And amonsgt the modern painters, Hannibal Carache, relates of himself, that going to see Bassano at Venice, he went to take a book off a shelf, and found it to be the picture of one, so lively done, that he who was a great painter, was deceived by it. The flesh of Raphael’s picture is so natural, that it seems to be alive. And so do Titians pictures, who was the greatest master for colouring that ever was, having attained to imitate humane bodies in all the softness of flesh, and beauty of complexion.

His concurrents in the art were nevertheless great masters; amongst them were Timantes and Parrhasius; and with this last Zeuxis had many contests, in one of which he owned himself overdone; for having agreed each of them to draw something for mastery, Zeuxis drew grapes so rarely done, that the birds flew and peck’d at them; and thereupon he bidding Parrhasius show his piece, was by him presented with a picture, with a curtain before it; which Zeuxis going hastily to draw, found that it was nothing but a painted one, so well done, that it had deceiv’d him.

Though Nature be the rule, yet Art has the priviledge of perfecting it; for you must know that there are few objects made naturally so entirely beautiful as they might be, no one man or woman possesses all the advantages of feature, proportion and colour due to each sense. Therefore the antients, when they had any great work to do, upon which they would value themselves did use to take several of the beautifullest objects they designed to paint, and out of each of them, draw what was most perfect to make up one exquisite figure; thus Zeuxis being imployed by the inhabitants of Crotona, a city of Calabria, to make for their temple of Juno, a female figure, naked; he desired the liberty of seeing their handsomest virgins, out of whom he chose five, from whose several excellencies he fram’d a most perfect both in features, shape and colouring, calling it Helena. At last in the time of Alexander the great, all the artists, both painters and sculptors, met and considered how to give such infallible rules to their art, as no artist should be able to depart from them without erring; and to that end having examined all the beauties of nature, and how each part of a human body ought to be, to make one accomplished model for posterity to govern themselves by: a statue was made according to those rules by Polycletus, a famous sculptor of that age; and it proved so admirable in all its parts, that it was called, the Rule, and all those that wrought afterwards, imitated as near as they could the proportions of that figure and the graces of it, as believing it was impossible fort art to go beyond it.

He[[3:Apollodorus.]] was the master of Zeuxis, who carried painting to its highest perfection, and acquired to himself great riches, though he never sold any of his pieces, but gave them all for nothing, saying, that if they were to be duly valued, whole kingdoms and provinces could not pay for them. He was besides so magnificent in his humour, that being at the Olympian Games, which was the noblest assembly of all Greece; he wore his name in gold letters upon his cloak, that all might take notice of him. [[4:suite: Zeuxis Athlète]]