A charming Representation of one of the first Hot Air Balloon demonstrations by the Montgolfier Brothers in Versailles by Louis Gabriel Moreau also known as Moreau l’Aîné.
In it we see the Montgolfière rising above the gardens on the right upper hand side. The scene is observed by a festive crowd milling about in 18th century cloth.
One gentleman raises a Longview to better observe the rise of the balloon, while in the center a family of three may be a representation of the King, Queen and young Dauphin.
This little painting uses Moreau’s preferred mediums Watercolor and Gouache painting, and is framed in a period gilt wood frame.
Born in Paris in 1740, Louis Gabriel Moreau distinguished himself above all as an engraver, draftsman and gouache painter.
He was a pupil of Pierre Antoine Demachy, an architectural painter, who passed on to him his taste for landscapes decorated with monuments.
However, Moreau observed nature with more sincerity and freshness than his master.
The artist exhibited a series of drawings at the Exposition de la Jeunesse in 1761 and also presented two landscapes at the Salon de l’Académie de Saint Luc in 1764, the year he was received. He appeared again ten years later at the Académie with various views, painted or etched, which seem to be inspired by Italian sites although Moreau never left Paris and its surroundings.
Unlike his younger brother, the artist was never admitted to the Académie Royale, being mainly interested in landscape painting, and had to wait until the 1790s to exhibit at the Salon, when access to this genre was finally recognized.
In later years he was appointed court painter to the Count of Artois, the king’s younger brother, which involved the which involved the privilege of residing at the Louvre.
He passed away in 1805.
September 19, 1783 is a key date in the history of humanity. Since Leonardo da Vinci in the 15th century, Man had wanted to rise into the air. The Age of Enlightenment would finally achieve this. Joseph and Étienne Montgolfier, originally from Ardèche, began a series of experiments in 1782 around a piece of fabric inflated by a fire of wool and wet straw.
The demonstration brought them to the attention of the Royal Academy of Sciences, which called on them to repeat their experiment in Paris.
In 1783, Étienne carried out a first conclusive captive test, which he repeated a second time, seven days before the demonstration before the king at Versailles.
Made of cotton canvas glued with paper on both sides, the balloon measured 18.47 m high by 13.28 m wide and weighed 400 kg.
It was called Le Réveillon, after his friend Jean-Baptiste Réveillon, director of the Royal Wallpaper Factory. He created a decoration on an azure blue background with the king’s initials – two intertwined “L”s – linked by various ornaments, all gilded.
The demonstration took place in front of Louis XVI and the royal family, in the forecourt of the Château, which was packed with people. As a precaution, some animals had been used to occupy the flight.
The balloon rose, to the amazement and cheers of the audience. It climbed to 600 m. Then, damaged by a tear, it descended slowly eight minutes later, after having travelled 3.5 km. It landed in the Vaucresson woods, at the Maréchal crossroads.
The animals were collected by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, a physicist and future aeronaut. They were alive. The experiment was a success. The door to the first human flight was opened. As a reward, the animals, true heroes of the air, were collected by Louis XVI at the Versailles menagerie. The experiment was repeated, this time with men, in front of the Dauphin at the Château de La Muette on 21 November. Pilâtre de Rozier became the first man aboard a flying ship.
A page in the history of humanity was turned.
The Watercolor unframed measures 5 inches x 7 inches
The Louis XVI Frame measures 10 inches x 13 inches.