Maurice Quentin de La Tour Enter a
feeling, not
a gallery.
Choose a mood and the room itself answers — the light cools or warms, the air changes pace, and only the works that carry that feeling step forward from the dark. Everything else recedes into shadow.
Maurice Quentin de La Tour
Maurice Quentin de La Tour: A Life in Pastel Born: September 5, 1704, Saint-Quentin, France Died: February 17, 1788, Saint-Quentin, Picardy, Kingdom of France Known For: Rococo portraiture in pastel, capturing likenesses of Voltaire, Louis XV, and Madame de Pompadour. Early Life and Artistic Development Maurice Quentin de La Tour was born into a musical family; his father, François de La Tour, was a musician for th
e Duc du Maine. Despite initial familial expectations, Maurice pursued painting. Around 1724, he moved to Paris, where he began his artistic career. Early training included studies with Jacques Spoede and a brief period in Rheims. A trip to England in 1725 further influenced his style. His early portraits, such as the one of Voltaire (1731), demonstrated an emerging talent for capturing character and likeness. This portrait was…