Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin (1770 - 1852)

Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin

Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Memin was a distinguished French portrait artist, celebrated for his intricate and lifelike chalk drawings and engravings. Born in Dijon, France, in 1770, he found refuge in the United States during the tumultuous years of the French Revolution. Between 1798 and 1814, Saint-Memin created over a thousand portraits of notable American figures, utilizing a unique physiognotrace device to capture the essence of his subjects with remarkable accuracy​​​​.

After returning to France in 1814, he became the director of the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, where he served until his death in 1852​​. His works, which include profiles of figures such as Thomas Jefferson and Meriwether Lewis, provide a fascinating glimpse into the faces that shaped early American history and are preserved in institutions like the Smithsonian and the Library of Congress​​​​.

For collectors and art history enthusiasts, Saint-Memin's oeuvre offers a unique perspective on American portraiture and the artistic exchange between France and the United States during a pivotal era. His contributions to art continue to be studied and appreciated for their historical value and artistic merit.

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