A landmark account of the work, thought, and life of the seventeenth-century French painter In this book, Anthony Blunt presents a rich account of the paintings, life, and development of the great seventeenth-century French classicist Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665), addressing the artist’s entire oeuvre alongside his theory of art. Blunt shows why Poussin holds a central place in the great French humanist line that produced Racine, Molière, Voltaire, the Parnassians, and Mallarmé. At the same time, he examines how Poussin looks back to Raphael and ancient Rome, while pointing forward to Ingres, Cézanne, the Cubists, and Picasso.

Publication coincides with the 400th anniversary of the artist's birth and a forthcoming exhibition

"This illustrated book, written by leading scholars and the result of years of research and technical analysis, catalogues nearly one hundred paintings, from works by Francois Clouet in the sixteenth century to paintings by Elisabeth Louise Vigee Le Brun in the eighteenth. All these works are explored in detailed, readable entries that will appeal as much to the general art lover as to the specialist." --Book Jacket.

The seventeenth century painter Nicolas Poussin founded the French Classical tradition, working the majority of his career in Rome. He specialised in history paintings, depicting scenes from the Bible, ancient history, and mythology, which are notable for their narrative clarity and dramatic force. Poussin was a man of contrasts; sensual, yet austere and intellectual, prizing reason, order and dispassion above all else. His art is a reconciliation and synthesis of these traits, setting an example of what would become the standard for a long tradition of academic art, continuing until the end of the nineteenth century. His influence was far-reaching, winning the approval of the Neoclassical masters, the Post-Impressionists and even modernists like Pablo Picasso. Delphi’s Masters of Art Series presents the world’s first digital e-Art books, allowing readers to explore the works of great artists in comprehensive detail. This volume presents Poussin’s complete paintings in beautiful detail, with concise introductions, hundreds of high quality images and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1) * The complete paintings of Nicolas Poussin – over 300 images, fully indexed and arranged in chronological and alphabetical order * Includes reproductions of rare works * Features a special ‘Highlights’ section, with concise introductions to the masterpieces, giving valuable contextual information * Enlarged ‘Detail’ images, allowing you to explore Poussin’s celebrated works in detail, as featured in traditional art books * Hundreds of images in colour – highly recommended for viewing on tablets and smartphones or as a valuable reference tool on more conventional eReaders * Special chronological and alphabetical contents tables for the paintings * Easily locate the artworks you wish to view * Includes a selection of Poussin's drawings – explore the artist’s varied works * Features two bonus biographies – discover Poussin's artistic and personal life Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting e-Art books CONTENTS: The Highlights The Death of Chione (1622) Bacchanals: The Andrians (1627) The Death of Germanicus (1627) The Martyrdom of Saint Erasmus (1629) Parnassus (1630) Plague of Ashdod (1630) The Adoration of the Golden Calf (1634) A Dance to the Music of Time (1636) The Israelites Gathering the Manna (1638) Et in Arcadia ego (1638) The Seven Sacraments (1640) Time Defending Truth against the Attacks of Envy and Discord (1641) Landscape with Polyphemus (1649) The Annunciation (1657) The Four Seasons (1660-1664) Apollo and Daphne (1664) The Paintings The Complete Paintings Alphabetical List of Paintings The Drawings List of Drawings The Biographies Poussin (1838) by Arthur Thomas Malkin Nicolas Poussin (1913) by Louis Gillet Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles or to buy the whole Art series as a Super Set

Nicolas Poussin(1594 - 1665) was undoubtedly a highly significant master of the historical genre. He shaped its aesthetics which, regrettably, subsequently became regarded as a set of hard-and-fast rules (a trap which the Russian followers of the founder of classicism also fell into). We know that Poussin attributed prime significance to the actual choice of matter for depiction, giving preference to subjects which provided food for profound thought. Creatively reworking the aesthetic legacy of the Ancients, he introduced into the realm of painting the concept of the “modus” (mood of depiction), which established the functional unity of three components: the idea, the structure of the depiction, and its perception by the viewer. Composition assumed a predominant significance in his artistic system. In a letter of 1665, Nicolas Poussin put forward three main theses: firstly, painting is simply imitation; secondly, it aims to bring delight; Thirdly, the artist is endowed with a natural talent that no one can give him or deprive him of.

"The work of the great French painter Nicolas Poussin (15941665) is most often associated with classically inspired settings and figures depicting solemn scenes from mythology or the Bible. Yet he also created some of the most influential landscapes in Western art, endowing them with a poetic quality that has been admired by artists as different as Constable, Turner, and Ce;zanne. As the British critic William Hazlitt noted in 1844, 'This great and learned man might be said to see nature through the glass of time'. This beautiful catalogue presents the first in-depth examination of Poussin's landscapes. Featured here are more than 40 paintings, ranging from the artist's early Venetian-inspired pastorals to his grandly structured and austere works, designed as metaphors or allegories for the processes of nature. Also included are approximately 60 drawings and essays by internationally renowned scholars who examine the painter's visual, literary, and philosophical influences as well as his relationships with his patrons and his place in the art-historical canon."--Publisher description.