Louis Carrogis Carmontelle
Louis Carrogis Carmontelle was born in Paris on the 15th of August 1717. His father worked as a bootmaker, placing the family in modest circumstances. The young Louis studied drawing and geometry with dedication. At age twenty-three he qualified for the title of engineer. He entered service at the Château de Dampierre under the Duc de Chevreuse. There he taught mathematics to noble children. This early training laid the foundation for his diverse career.
After 1763 Carmontelle served Louis Philippe I, Duke of Orléans as a lecteur. His role involved providing theatrical performances for the royal family. He wrote farces and tales alongside his engineering duties. He designed scenery and crafted costumes for these productions. In this capacity he invented the proverbe dramatique genre. These were light comedy scenes meant to spark improvisation. He also created plays for ballerina Marie-Madeleine Guimard. Her private theater sat at Pantin where she performed his works.
Carmontelle produced portraits using pen and watercolor techniques. He completed notable likenesses of famous figures in less than two hours. One drawing depicts infant Mozart playing the clavier. The Carnavalet Museum in Paris holds over six hundred of his drawings. The Museum of Chantilly also preserves many of these sketches. Another work shows Leopold Mozart with Wolfgang Amadeus and Maria Anna. These rapid sketches captured the essence of his subjects quickly.
In 1773 the Duc de Chartres asked Carmontelle to design a garden. This project surrounded a small house northwest of Paris. Between 1773 and 1778 he created the folie de Chartres. Today this space is known as Parc Monceau. It departed from standard English landscape gardens of that era. The design presented fantastic scenes to unite all places and times. Fabriques or architectural structures filled the grounds. Styles ranged from antiquity to exoticism and Chinese motifs. Ruins, tombs, and rustic landscapes surprised visitors walking through.
In 1783 Carmontelle began working on décors transparents animés. These were paintings of landscapes printed on long paper bands. Each band measured fifty centimeters high and up to forty-two meters long. He mounted them on wooden rollers inside a box. Daylight entered from behind passing through the translucent paper. The landscapes rolled slowly from one roller to another. This movement gave viewers the illusion of walking in a garden. Titles included Landscapes of France and The Banks of the Seine. One such moving landscape remains preserved at the Museum of Sceaux.
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Common questions
When was Louis Carrogis Carmontelle born and where?
Louis Carrogis Carmontelle was born in Paris on the 15th of August 1717. His father worked as a bootmaker, placing the family in modest circumstances.
What role did Louis Carrogis Carmontelle serve for Louis Philippe I Duke of Orléans after 1763?
After 1763 Carmontelle served Louis Philippe I Duke of Orléans as a lecteur. His role involved providing theatrical performances for the royal family while he wrote farces and tales alongside his engineering duties.
How many drawings by Louis Carrogis Carmontelle does the Carnavalet Museum hold?
The Carnavalet Museum in Paris holds over six hundred of his drawings. The Museum of Chantilly also preserves many of these sketches.
Where is the folie de Chartres designed by Louis Carrogis Carmontelle located today?
Between 1773 and 1778 he created the folie de Chartres which surrounds a small house northwest of Paris. Today this space is known as Parc Monceau.
What were the dimensions of the paper bands used in décors transparents animés by Louis Carrogis Carmontelle?
Each band measured fifty centimeters high and up to forty-two meters long. He mounted them on wooden rollers inside a box so daylight entered from behind passing through the translucent paper.