Allegory of Strength and Temperance by Jean-François de Troy

Despite the inscription on the reverse of Aulteribe’s painting, which reads ‘justice and innocence’, Christophe Leribault and Alastair Laing note that whilst the sword and the lion undeniably symbolise Fortitude, the attribute held by the other figure is more likely to be the bit of Temperance. The choice of these two cardinal virtues suggests the existence of a probable companion piece representing Prudence and Justice. Indeed, many of de Troy’s companion pieces have disappeared or are inaccessible today.

Jean François de Troy was a painter of great versatility, equally skilled as a portraitist and in depicting historical, mythological or religious subjects, as well as in composing elegant genre scenes showing figures dressed in the fashion of their time, set in parks or interiors. He was regarded by his contemporaries as one of the most important painters in French history.

Born into a family of painters, his father was the portraitist François de Troy (1645–1730), who was his first teacher. After failing to win the Prix de Rome, he joined his father in Italy from 1699 to 1706, and was subsequently admitted to the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1708. In 1738, he was appointed director of the French Academy in Rome and lived there for the rest of his life.

He first made a name for himself amongst a wealthy clientele of financiers, in contrast to his rival, François Lemoyne, who worked for the king. His famous*Oyster Lunch* ( 1735, Musée Condé, Chantilly) has led people to forget that the painter was more of a proponent of the grand style than a genre painter.

His body of work includes numerous large-scale historical and allegorical compositions, as well as many portraits and genre or courtly scenes, marking a significant shift in the repertoire of French painting from the early decades of^{the 18th} century onwards. Nevertheless, he also continued the tradition of history painting and mythological scenes, executed in a colourful and fluid style, owing a debt to both Veronese and Peter Paul Rubens. A characteristic example of his style is his allegory *Time Unveiling Truth* (1733, National Gallery, London).

Whilst allegorical works were still highly prized in the early^18th century, particularly for their decorative appeal, they gradually fell out of favour following the criticism levelled by Abbé du Bos and Denis Diderot. In his *Critical Reflections on Poetry and Painting* (1719), Abbé Du Bos (1670–1742) explains that the allegorical device serves to obscure meaning; it is a sort of ‘witty remark’ that renders it incomprehensible and, for this reason more than any other, it must be avoided in the arts.

Allegory fell into gradual disrepute throughout the 18th century. Diderot echoed Du Bos’s criticisms in his commentaries on the painting Salons from the 1750s onwards, denouncing commonplace allegories in particular: ‘A sublime allegory is only good once. It is a witty remark that loses its charm the moment it is repeated.’ However, the genre endured and evidently enjoyed some success amongst patrons and buyers. At the 1765 Salon, Louis-Jean-François Lagrenée (1725–1805)—by which time Jean-François de Troy had been dead for over ten years—still exhibited two allegorical paintings that formed a pair: Justice and Clemency and Kindness and Generosity.

Christophe Leribault, Alastair Laing, Jean-François de Troy, 1679–1752, Paris, Arthéna, 2002.