Beyond Devilish Humor: The Serious Side of Jehan-Georges Vibert, “Painter of Cardinals”

Abstract

Art historians, art dealers, curators and collectors—mostly American—who know the work of Jehan-George Vibert (1840–1902), are familiar with his canvases featuring monks and cardinals. Vibert’s paintings were the centerpiece of an exhibition about anecdotal paintings at the Taft Museum of Art in Cincinnati in 1992. Art restorers who know Vibert’s name, however, are more familiar with two other significant aspects of his activity: chemistry and writing. Vibert published many technical books, including The Science of Painting (1892). Moreover, Vibert collaborated with pigment and paint manufacturers in order to develop new markets with different kinds of products for artists.Recent archival research done at the Getty Research Institute has turned up intriguing new information that provides depth to the full range of Vibert’s multiple engagements with painting, writing, the art market, and chemistry. In the context of the artistic, scientific, and industrial revolutions, Vibert sat astride multiple disciplines.