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Georges de La Tour

Basic information

ID: Ж-779
Author: Georges de La Tour
Name: Payment
Date of creation: 1620 (?)
Technique: oil painting
Material: canvas oil
Dimensions (height x width, cm): 99 x 152

Additionally

Type: painting
Provenance: Received from the Lubomirski Museum, 1940. Previously, before 1930 – the Dabski Gallery.
Exposition: Potocki Palace

Information about author

Author: Georges de La Tour
Artist's lifetime: 1593–1652
Country: France
Biography: The artist was born in 1593 in the town of Vic-sur-Seille, Lorraine, into a large family of a baker. Alphonse de Ramberville, the governor of the judiciary, who had a great passion for the arts, collected artworks and was a painter himself, played a significant role in the fate of the talented young man. Thanks to him, Georges de La Tour moved to Luneville in 1612, where he worked at the court of Duke Henry II. He would eventually live there for the rest of his life and die in 1652. At that time, Luneville was a cultural centre closely connected to the capital and the ducal court. Whether the artist received his education in Luneville or abroad is still being determined. However, it is known that he achieved recognition at a young age; fame and success accompanied him throughout his life. The artist painted pictures commissioned by wealthy townspeople and found influential patrons not only among the ducal circles (commissions from Duke Henry II and Charles IV) but also in Paris (the title of "royal painter", received around 1631). Most of his paintings were destroyed in a fire in 1638. Georges de La Tour was influenced by the artistic culture of the neighbouring Netherlands and the works of Caravaggio, which resonated with his desire to realistically depict the dramatic conflicts of contemporary life using expressive and transformative techniques. La Tour's work is infused with the bitter truth of life, as he lived during the Thirty Years' War. The depiction of despair, suffering from constant hostilities and frequent epidemics resonated with the people. The artist often painted religious scenes but endowed the figures of saints with such earthly emotions that they seemed to be peasants, craftsmen, and the city's desperate poor. Joseph appears as an elderly, weary carpenter, Saint Peter as a homeless beggar, and Mary Magdalene as a solitary woman lost in bitter thoughts. With even greater pain, the artist revealed the hardships of that time in everyday scenes. He showed the frauds of swindlers, theft, and the devastated alienation of usurers – all pages of a heartbreaking life story dominated by money and violence. La Tour is an exceptional phenomenon, standing on par with the highest achievements of French culture of his time. After half a century of continuous searching, thirty-two Georges de La Tour works have been discovered. Scholars from many countries are engaged in the research since the significance of this great artist's legacy has transcended the borders of France, becoming part of world culture.

Object description

The most renowned painting in the Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery is "Payment" by Georges de La Tour, who worked at the court of Henry II, Duke of Lorraine. The painting's storyline remains mysterious. Jacques Thuillier suggested that the painting was partially cropped, and a figure of Christ should have been on the right. Georges Pariset associated the image with the Calling of Apostle Matthew, which was described in an article by Ulysse Moussalli. Some have also recognised another biblical episode in the painting: "Judas Receiving the Thirty Pieces of Silver". However, the motif of Judas' betrayal is almost absent in the works of Caravaggists. At the beginning of his career, La Tour preferred depicting daylight, and later he started painting nocturnal scenes incorporating interior light – a candle or a lantern – adding more mystery and dramatic effect to his imagery. The candle flame illuminates only certain elements of the composition – faces, hands, and objects on the table. The old man is focused on counting the money, while the man sitting across the table closely observes his actions. Another title of the painting is "The Usurer". It is speculated that the depicted people are peasants paying taxes. In reality, the usurer should exude a certain confidence, while those who come to him would naturally be dependent on him. Here, however, coercion is evident. The old man in grey attire counts the money reluctantly under the watchful gaze of observers, while the young man with a stick points at him as if confirming the points of the document read aloud. This scene most closely resembles an act of extortion from which the population suffered. Similar motifs can be found in the graphic art of Lorraine.

Inscriptions

On the left, near the edge of the canvas (under the elbow of the character in a red long robe), there is a signature: "e De La Tour fec". Underneath the signature is a horizontal line, below it is the date: 16.., which also has a horizontal underline.

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Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

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