Laurent de la
La Ir

First painting lessons La Il received from his father, Etienne de La Ira. His education he finished at the workshop of Georges Lallement. He studied painting in the castle of Fontainebleau, as evidenced by his early painting "Tiles" (Paris, private collection). Sure, he used the tips of Quentin Varin, a friend of his family and the first teacher of Poussin. His first big order "Pilgrimage of Pope Nicholas V at the tomb of St. Francis" for the chapel of Saint-françois-de-Capucin in the Marais, combines Mannerist features with already slim and classic sensitivity. Two works for Notre Dame, "St. Peter healing the sick" (1635) and "Appeal Itself" (1637) has strengthened its reputation. The Baroque painting "the conversion of Saul", dramatic lighting which resembles the art of Vouet and Blanchard, marks the end of the first period of creativity La Ira.

From 1640 he decorates hotels and Calleman Montaron, making sketches for the tapestries (a series "Life of St. Stephen" for TS. Saint-étienne-du-Mont in Paris, pictures Paris, Louvre) and takes orders many fans of "armchair" paintings, and religious orders writes altarpieces for the newly built churches. In 1648 he became one of twelve founding members of KOR. Academy of painting and sculpture. This variety reflects numerous Hobbies versatile educated man, an artist, music lover, maths and archaeologist. The typical representative of the Parisian school at the time, he, in response to the frenzy of painting Vouet, enters into their composition a clear desire for elegance and tranquility ("Madonna with child", 1642, Paris, Louvre). More and more significant place in his works is the landscape, which is inscribed in any architectural, and archaeologically significant motifs that is already apparent in the early painting "the mercury reports of Bacchus to the nymphs on education" (1630, St. Petersburg, State. The Hermitage), or in one of the masterpieces of the Mature period "Davan looking for

their idols" (1647, Paris, Louvre), where

the action unfolds against the backdrop of a peaceful and transparent landscape. Bright colour, close Gentileschi, reinforces the drama of the painting "the death of the children at Bethel" (1653, Arras, musée des Beaux-arts) or "the Finding of Moses" (Detroit Institute of arts). In "Landscape with flute" (1647, Montpellier, musée Fabre) or in the "Landscape with the bather" (1653, Paris, Louvre) characters enveloped by haze to highlight the landscape, which becomes, in fact, the main subject of these paintings. The transparency of the stroke and the subtlety of the observer indicate the influence of the Flemish landscape painter Fallera, who lived at that time in Paris. Nevertheless, until the end of his life La er he painted a mythological or classical subjects ("Cornelia", Budapest, Museum of fine arts, "Allegory of Peace and Justice", 1654, the Cleveland Museum), large and expressive compositions on religious subjects ("Christ appearing to the three Marias", Paris, Louvre; "the descent from the cross", 1655, Rouen, Museum of fine arts; "the appearance of Christ to Mary Magdalene" and "Christ at Emmaus", 1656, Grenoble, Museum of fine arts).

Remained only a few works showing the activities of La Ira as a decorator. One of them is the "Allegory of Music" (1648, new York, Metropolitan Museum). Besides the ensemble (perhaps in hotel Tallman) also belonged to the "Grammar" (1650, London, NAT. Gal.) two "putti" (Dijon, musée Magnin), and maybe "Geometry" (1649, Toledo, Ohio, Museum of art) and "Astronomy" (1649, orléans, musée des Beaux-arts). In NAT. library in Paris kept four dozen fine engravings La Ira, preparatory drawings for which are in the Louvre ("SV. John", sanguine) and the Fabre Museum in Montpellier ("the Three graces").

La Ira is one of the leading representatives of the Paris "attic" style, the greatest landscape painter of the XVII century, a Large exhibition of his work was held in 1989 (Grenoble, Rennes, Bordeaux).