St Memin Federal Portraits lot of 77

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PORTRAITS OF DISTINGUISHED AMERICANS ENGRAVED BY JULIEN FEVRET DE SAINT-MÉMIN 1770 - 1852 This auction offers a very rare and extraordinary collection of neoclassical profile portraits drawn and engraved by the famed French-American portraitist, Charles B.J.F. de Saint-Mémin. 77 prominent Americans of the Federal period are represented. Some are very identifiable such as Thomas Jefferson, Lewis and Clark, however identifying the subjects will take a bit of research. All engravings are in excellent condition and are protected with acid free boards and protective coverings. The actual measurments of the engravings are different in size. Those that are formatted in a squared format measures 2 1/2" x 2 3/4", oval format measures 3" x 4", circular format measures 2 3/4" x 2 3/4" The actual paper that the engravings are on measures 7" x 10". The only company that has a collection of this magnitude is the Reese Williams Company in New Haven Ct., they specialize in rare books and St Memin originals and engravings. This collection is irreplacable, and must insured if sold. Please email with any questions, additional photos available upon request! If you need to chat regarding the engravings please phone . Federal Profiles Saint-Mémin in America 1793-1814 Between 1796 and 1810, Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin (1770-1852) created some of the most memorable images in the history of American portraiture. Nearly a thousand Americans sat for portraits, among them Thomas Jefferson, Paul Revere, Mother Seton, Meriwether Lewis, and Charles Willson Peale. Saint-Mémin's popularity rested on a growing appreciation for profiles as a particularly truthful form of portraiture, and his distinctive images have come to epitomize Federal America. A member of the French ditary nobility, Saint-Mémin came to New York City in 1793, at the age of twenty-three. He was a former military officer exiled by the events of the French Revolution. In New York, Saint-Mémin turned to the arts to support himself, his parents, and his sister. With some training in drawing and an aptitude for precision, he taught himself the art of engraving. First, he made a few landscapes and city plans. Then, in 1796 he took up the profession of portraitist. His partner was Thomas Bluget de Valdenuit (1763-1846), also of the French military. Saint-Mémin and Valdenuit followed the same practice in their New York partnership. Their first advertisement appeared in the New York Daily Advertiser in January 1797: PHYSIOGNOTRACE. LIKENESSES ENGRAVED. The Subscribers beg leave to inform their Friends and the Public in general, that they take and engrave Portraits on an improved plan of the celebrated Physiognotrace of Paris, and in a style never introduced before in this country. From the expedition with which the work is done, and the moderation of the terms, they presume to hope that they will give satisfaction to those who, protectors of the Arts, will please to encourage them with their commands. An exhibition of their performance may be seen at Messrs. Juno. J. Stapples and Sons, No 169 Pearl Street, or by applying at their lodgings, No 11, Fair Street. ST. MEMIN & VALDENUIT. Valdenuit made the drawings, usually on a buff- or cream-colored paper that measured about 50 by 38 cm. (20 by 15 in.) and was coated with a pink wash. Next, Saint-Mémin made the engravings. The sitter received the drawing, the plate, and a dozen engravings, a unique portrait package offered in the United States only by French émigré artists. By the time the two men ended their partnership in September 1797, when Valdenuit returned to France, they had made about sixty large profile portraits, most of which were engraved, and they had also engraved five silhouettes. Saint-Mémin continued the business on his own, making an additional sixty portraits in New York City in the following year, a pace that he maintained throughout his American career. In 1798 he moved the portrait business to Philadelphia, and... read more

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