Jacques Blanchard

Lost until now, this painting was only known through copies of mediocre quality, and above all from the engraving after the original, made with a burin, in reverse, by Cornelis Bloemaert (1603–1692) while he was staying in Paris in the early 1630s (ill. 1). His presence in Paris establishes a terminus ante quem for Blanchard’s canvas, which cannot be dated later than 1633, when the engraver had moved to Rome. The rediscovery of the original of Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar in the fairly small corpus of surviving paintings by Blanchard is therefore an important new stage in the reconstitution of his oeuvre, about which Félibien wrote that he had ‘made a great contribution to the re-establishment of good taste in painting in France’ (Entretien sur les vies et sur les ouvrages des plus excellens peintres anciens et modernes, 1690, p. 180; our translation).

This ambitious painting was produced at a crucial time in Blanchard’s career: he had come back to Paris after several years in Italy, especially in Rome, followed by Venice – whose art would have an enduring impact on him – and finally in Turin, before returning via Lyon. He needed to make a mark in the capital city, where the artistic environment had changed considerably, with the return of Vouet, the presence of Vignon and the emergence of a new School now far removed from Fontainebleu Mannerism.

Nevertheless, his art was well received. The influence of Venetian artists and especially Titian had a rapid impact on collectors, who were particularly pleased to see the recurrent presence of female figures distinguished by their remarkable sensuality and grace, whether sacred or profane. 

Neo-Venetianism was embraced and it is in this context that Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar is situated. The arrangement of the scene is close to other ambitious compositions of the same period, in particular the Danae in the Musée de Lyon (inv. 1990.71) and The Death of Cleopatra in Reims (Musée des Beaux-Arts, inv. 976.7): a wide format, focused on mid-length figures based on the Caravaggesque formulas adopted by Guercino and Guido Reni, dominated by a thick red velvet curtain which contrasts with the deep blue of Joseph’s cloak.

Ill. 1 Cornelis Bloemaert after Jacques Blanchard, Joseph and Potiphar's Wife © The Trustees of the British Museum.