Art Gallery

David, Jacques Louis (1748-1825), a French painter born in Paris on August 30, 1748. He was trained under the Rococo artist, Joseph Marie Vien, however he chose to emulate Poussin's style. In 1773 David attempted suicide through starvation after his fourth failure to gain the Prix de Rome. David won the Prix de Rome in 1774 and stayed there developing his neo-classical style until 1781. During his stay in Rome, David painted The Oath of the Horatii (1785; Louvre), and The Death of Socrates (1787; Metropolitan Museum of Art), When he returned to Paris, David became a member of the Royal Academy and was given a studio in the Louvre. During the French Revolution, David was a Jacobin, and voted for the death of Louis XVI. He was an active member in the revolution, and David painted his greatest picture, The Death of Marat (1793; Museum of Brussels). After the fall of Robespierre, David was imprisoned twice. A few years later, he became a Bonapartist, and painted many large pictures of Napoleon. When Napoleon was exiled from France, David also went into exile in Brussels in 1816, where he died on December 29, 1825.