Sarah Bakkali | Independent Scholar (original) (raw)

Conference Presentations by Sarah Bakkali

Un monument à la gloire de l'école moderne : La collection de Tønnes Christian Bruun-Neergaard (1... more Un monument à la gloire de l'école moderne : La collection de Tønnes Christian Bruun-Neergaard (1776-1824) Sarah Bakkali « L'homme qui chérit les arts comme l'enfant de la nature, s'il veut se procurer les ouvrages qui approchent le plus de la perfection, doit donc se lier avec les artistes. » Sur la situation des Beaux-arts en France (1801)

Selling Old Master paintings across the Channel: Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun and Britain Sarah Ba... more Selling Old Master paintings across the Channel: Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun and Britain
Sarah Bakkali, Independent scholar

Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun, one of the leading late eighteenth century Parisian art dealers, was also one of the most active ones on the international front. Indeed, as early as in the 1770's, he worked with correspondents such as, for example in London, Noël Joseph Desenfans and James Christie. This dimension of Lebrun's career has not been extensively studied, whereas he was one of the emblematic connoisseurs in Old Master paintings of his time and may have strongly influenced their introduction on the British marketplace.
A careful study of his auctions and customers reveals the importance of his connexions across the Chanel and their evolution. Relatively scattered in the 1770's and 1780's, his British contacts helped him facing the collapse of the Parisian market after 1780 and selling the important stock he accumulated during the French revolution. Maybe encouraged by those experiences, Lebrun went on developing those connexions until his last years, working with various bankers and speculators.
With several examples documented by overlooked sources, we will also explore the functioning of those players and the way Lebrun disseminated his reputation and credibility outside his national borders. This credibility was indeed built on solid foundations, and in particular a powerful network in the world of Parisian dealers (and collectors) of Ancien Régime. As a central figure of a changing profession, Lebrun also strongly contributed to build the concept of a “speculative” Old Master painting. The latter played a crucial role in the emergence of London as a major marketplace in early nineteenth century Europe.

Sarah Bakkali , 2022

Artists and their networks at the service of industry and national economy in the early nineteent... more Artists and their networks at the service of industry and national economy in the early nineteenth century.
Sarah Bakkali, Independent scholar
"The small number of citizens who cultivate the arts that have drawing as their basis, must be, without exclusion, regarded as the preservers of good taste" wrote the art dealer Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun in his Essai sur les moyens d'encourager la peinture, la sculpture, l'architecture et la gravure in 1794. Indeed, the years that preceded this essay had profoundly reshaped the world of the arts and corporations. In 1791, the salon opened to nonacademicians and the Chapelier and d'Allarde laws put an end to guilds and encouraged freedom of enterprise, while in 1793, the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture was abolished. In addition to this, there was the absence of commissioners and the need to address themselves to a completely different audience. The possibility of proposing their drawings to companies, factories, theaters is offered to them through networks of sociability that facilitate the crossings between these two worlds. It is not by chance that in 1798, under the impulse of the Minister Nicolas-François de Neufchâteau, the Salon and the National Exhibition of Industry will be held simultaneously. The latter works the same way as the Salon with a jury and awards. Among the first gold medallists: The Manufacture Dihl & Guerard for its painted portraits on porcelain whose colors were obtained using an innovative process, Didot and its prestigious luxury editions using a new typography, Deharme for its varnished sheets, Gremont and Barré for its wallpapers. The Livrets de Salon also echo these artistic collaborations by mentioning the productions carried out for the Dihl & Guerard factory, for a Didot edition or for theater sets. Through an important work of research, we wish to present the context in which these collaborations emerge, the networks of sociability which favored their connection, the clientele to which these products of industry and arts are addressed as well as their reception. Was this really a boon for the artists? And on the other hand, did they participate in the success of the companies they worked for?

Speculating on Old Master paintings during the French Revolution: the Trumbull, Parker and Lebrun... more Speculating on Old Master paintings during the French Revolution: the Trumbull, Parker and Lebrun partnership
Sarah Bakkali, independent scholar

During troubled times, as it is currently the case with the terrible crisis we are all going through, art has been seen as a kind of safe haven for investors. Of course, this is only true for exceptional pieces with an irreproachable pedigree, for example, old works of sure attribution and prestigious provenance. We propose here to challenge this commonplace idea for the French Revolution period and question how the financial crisis structured the art market.
To do so, we relied on a very well-documented case, the so-called "speculative adventure" of John Trumbull and Daniel Parker. In 1794, John Trumbull, an American painter and son of the Governor of Connecticut, went to France as private secretary of John Jay to negotiate with the British government. As France was at war with the United Kingdom, this severely hindered trade between dealers of both countries and exports. As a citizen coming from a neutral country, son of a governor in close contact with the American delegation based in Paris, Trumbull enjoyed many facilities allowing him to engage in many speculations including that of Old Master paintings. Both of them joined forces with the art dealer Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun to carry out these operations. From the choice of acquisitions to their financing and exportation, they were all meticulously recorded in an account book, today kept at the New York Historical Society Library. Supplemented by personal Trumbull’s archives kept at the Yale University Library as well as his correspondence, we could reconstruct his financial arrangements and draw up his guidelines for making business during the revolutionary turmoil in Paris.
After a presentation of those operations, we will take a closer look at the actors and stakes, and especially the role of Lebrun, on whose connoisseurship the whole financial package was based. Behind, what was at stake was the status of the merchandise: a "safe haven", a “long term

"Avoid squandering" and act for "the success of the trade and the benefit of my country": the dil... more "Avoid squandering" and act for "the success of the trade and the benefit of my country": the dilemma of Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun during the French Revolution Sarah Bakkali, independent scholar "The collections or pieces which combine these qualities must therefore be acquired for the nation. But those are the collections, those are the pieces around which the guilty foreign agents and the greedy speculators who base the interests of their capital on public ruin. However fruitful the mine that their malevolence operates, it is urgent to put an end to their depredations as soon as possible." These words, taken from an alarmist report on the status of "precious objects" during the French Revolution were symptomatic of the concerns of the time and the distrust of these foreigners eager to rob the State of its treasures. The creation of the Museum (future Louvre museum) saw the publication of various reports and decrees whose purpose was to protect, purify and enrich national assets which were then regarded as in great danger. The Comité d'Instruction Public created a commission to carry out these various missions. Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Lebrun, one of the leading late eighteenth century Parisian art dealer and also one of the most active ones on the international front, was part of them. Yet he had just brandished the threat of leakages abroad. We have shown, in previous communications and articles, that some of its activities also contributed to those leaks. Divided between the necessity to appear as a patriot, in a period which did not tolerate traitors to the Nation, the necessity to make forget the flight of his wife, the famous painter Elisabeth Vigée Lebrun and the necessity to sell his stock, the dealer therefore sometimes used a double discourse and played two cards in the same time. The Lebrun case can serve as an illustration of the practices of a market which, after the confiscation of Biens Nationaux and the creation of the Museum, saw its actors in tension between their economic interests and patriotism. The legislative arsenal then set up reflects the obligation to regulate those contradictory needs: on the one hand, ensuring the integrity of the national collections and the enrichment of the Museum, on the other hand, ensuring the control and stability of a market public authorities and institutions could not do without. We propose here to recall that framework before discussing the various concrete measures that accompanied it. We will finish by confronting them with the suspicious activities of J. B. P. Lebrun which highlight the complex and ambiguous relationships between the law, the market and its actors.

Les saisies des biens des émigrés durant la Révolution française ont joué un rôle important dans ... more Les saisies des biens des émigrés durant la Révolution française ont joué un rôle important dans l’enrichissement des collections nationales. Parmi elles, celles du Muséum ont largement profité de ces mouvements d’œuvres d’art. En particulier, en 1796, le ministre des finances conjointement avec la commission décident d’« épurer et d’enrichir » les collections du muséum en ouvrant la possibilité d’échanges d’œuvres d’art avec des particuliers. Pour ces opérations, on a fait intervenir une figure majeure du marché de l’art de l’époque, le marchand Jean-Baptiste- Pierre Lebrun, en raison notamment de son expérience et de l’expertise qu’il a su mettre en avant depuis de nombreuses années. L’examen comparé des pièces utilisées comme monnaie d’échange et de celles conservées pour le Muséum permet d’éclairer cet épisode peu étudié. En particulier, on peut y discuter des critères utilisés pour distinguer des pièces dignes d’enrichir une collection nationale de celles pouvant être cédées à un créancier. Les choix opérés mettent en évidence l’opposition entre « valeur de musée » et « valeur de commerce », et le rôle essentiel des marchands.

In parallel with the spectacular development of modern painting on the late 18th and early 19th c... more In parallel with the spectacular development of modern painting on the late 18th and early 19th centuries Parisian market place, we observe that art dealers increasingly communicated about this emerging production. Both symptoma and driving force of that mutation, this new communication strategy occupied a place which was, until then, the almost exclusive domain of institutions (Académie, Salon) and reviewers. Thus, for dealers, it was no longer a matter of being connoisseurs, their reserved domain, but also of conquering a legitimacy to talk about art and, behind, getting closer to those institutions. After a brief history of those "dealers discourses", we will examine the media and the rethoric they used for their new communication. By a careful selection of case studies, we will also see that those strategies often worked as facades, in a troubled a dangerous period, for personal ambitions and tactics. Then, we will finally focus on the specific issue of genre painting which catalysed all the debates of the time, such as the defence of a national and patriotic school as well as, more generally, the function and place of art in the society.

Thursday 30 May, Royal Academy Friday 31 May, Kingston School of Art, Kingston University As the ... more Thursday 30 May, Royal Academy Friday 31 May, Kingston School of Art, Kingston University As the art market has grown and evolved worldwide, there have been many instances where new areas of production, trade, collecting and valuation of art have emerged. This academic conference and workshop focuses on exploring new paradigms and ways that art markets function, whether in the primary or secondary sector. The aim of this two-day conference and workshop is to evaluate, analyse and explore the range of mechanisms by which a particular 'product' enters the art market, how these markets evolve and who are the key players whether collectors or dealers,) individuals or institutions as well as the range of other agents. Well document prior areas of research into art market innovation, emergence and growth include17 th century imports of Chinese and Japanese ceramics, lacquers and textiles; the market for 17 th century Dutch and Flemish paintings in Paris and London during the 18th century; and the rise of the Barbizon school in 19 th-century Paris. More recently we have seen the emergence of photography and street art as important areas of production introducing both opportunities and risks to existing and new players. New art forms such as digital and video art raise further questions as to whether existing models of agency are still appropriate and thus, whether new technology is fundamentally changing the creation, trade, consumption and validation of art. This conference invites new and existing research around the emergence of art markets, their evolution and dynamics. Conference topics will include: the role of the state in the development of markets, the role of the artist. The art fair and the collector the creation of new markets, the dealer and the market, mapping markets, the role o f new media and impact of social change-with an ongoing focus and discussion on the tools, techniques, research methods and strategies which enable the study of art markets. In-depth discussion following each group of papers will allow participants to explore the complex relationships between the different factors that create, support and sustain the rise or fall of particular markets. The workshop ends with two round table discussions to explore further the methodologies involved in researching new markets. For further information or to register please

Collecting and art market studies of the eighteenth-century period, which saw the rise of an inte... more Collecting and art market studies of the eighteenth-century period, which saw the rise of an international art market, used to focus mainly around the circulation of Old Masters’ painted canvases. But the historiography has significantly expanded its scope in the last decades, to include the study of modern drawings.
Our paper proposes to recreate the networks and practices of modern drawing collecting, and its disruption on the already well-established French art market, by a detailed study of the collection of drawings bequeathed to the Fabre Museum of Montpellier by Antoine Valedau (1777-1838), a former Parisian stockbroker. These drawings, now preserved in a museum, were originally gathered in portfolios – the practice was traditional for prints or Old Masters drawings, but assembling works from living artists remained unusual. Easily displayed and circulated, they were praised for being the enterprise of a “man of the world, friend of the arts,” who had thus created “a real portable museum which has nothing in common with the album of the lady of fashion, but which presents a real interest, that of assembling for display the worthy productions of our most distinguished artists.” Le Miroir des spectacles, des lettres, des mœurs et des arts, December 11, 1821.

This collection, which we confront to other contemporary ensembles such as the Valedau and Chenard collections, as well as the collection of Alexandre du Sommerard, founder of the Cluny Museum, testifies to an emerging market and a growing consideration for modern art.
This paper first presents the disrupted context in which this practice appeared at the very end of the 18th century when artists had to adapt to a market in crisis. We will also touch upon the methodological difficulties of retracing collecting practices often founded on gift or exchanges arising from studio sociablity. Provenance search, auction studies and inventory upon decease – the traditional documents of collecting studies – are often unavailing in the case of modern drawing collections.
On the other hand, drawing collections, because they are evidence both of intimate links and of aesthetic choices that were less scrutinized and codified, give us unprecedented access to the networks of sociability of eighteenth-century collectors.

Workshop 2 - The Artist as an Entrepreneur & Career Paths hosted by HKU University of the Arts Ut... more Workshop 2 - The Artist as an Entrepreneur & Career Paths hosted by HKU University of the Arts Utrecht on December 17-18, 2018

French Revolution absolutely overturns the market of modern painting in Paris. Due especially to ... more French Revolution absolutely overturns the market of modern painting in Paris. Due especially to the departure of the major part of their clients abroad, as well as the opening of the Salon to non-academicians, artists rely on new strategies. Oughting to attract new clients, they develop new circles of sociability.
The artists’ new attitude towards the market is perfectly illustrated in the iconic painting realized by Louis Léopold Boilly (1761- 1845), l’Atelier d’Isabey. On one hand we can notice some of the most high-profile artists of the time such as Gérard, Girodet, Boilly and Isabey, on the other hand, one of the most remarkable collectors of the time in modern art, Simon Chenard (1758 - 1832), posing among them. The artist’s studio therefore appears as a place for creation but also as a place for promoting a now free artist, and a new sociability independent of the market since works of art are sold and bought without any middleman. On the collectors’ side, it is good form to parade in this sacred place where the artist « draw his inspiration » and thus be perceived as a real « friend of the arts ». That is how T.C. Bruun Neergaard, a danish amateur, describes Simon Chénard in 1801.
Through this Studio and Simon Chénard ’s collection, we suggest to question further these new strategies on both the creators and the collectors sides. First we shall introduce this work’s context of creation and its stakes, after which we shall reflect upon the reality of art studios which were its contemporaries, before exploring the networks and circles of sociability which were forged around this place. Are dealers and other professionals of the art market as absent as Boilly’s painting leads us to believe?

2016 American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies Conference, Pittsburgh, Inside the Artist’s ... more 2016 American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies Conference, Pittsburgh, Inside the Artist’s Studio
Thursday, 31 March, 4:15–5:45
Chair: Heather MCPHERSON, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Strangely, this « collection » has never been studied in detail, despite its big impact on the wo... more Strangely, this « collection » has never been studied in detail, despite its big impact on the world of art market and collecting when it was put on sale in 1797. Indeed, it was built in the dramatic context of the dispersion of large French collections in Paris and London during the Revolution and included several prestigious provenances. John Trumbull started this speculative operation in 1795 in Paris when he became aware that « in the confusion of the time, and the consequent ruin of ancient and opulent families, paintings by the old masters might be advantageously purchased » (Trumbull's Autobiography, 1841, p. 141).

Papers by Sarah Bakkali

Collecter et inventorier pour la nation : la formation révolutionnaire des collections

Collecter et inventorier pour la nation : la formation révolutionnaire des collections Éditions du Comité des travaux historiques et scientifiques , 2022

The Paris Fine Art Salon/Le Salon, 1791–1881

Sarah Bakkali , 2022

Collecter et inventorier pour la nation : la formation révolutionnaire des collections

Collecter et inventorier pour la nation : la formation révolutionnaire des collections Éditions du Comité des travaux historiques et scientifiques , 2022

The Paris Fine Art Salon/Le Salon, 1791–1881

Sociétés & Représentations, 2015

On sépare traditionnellement les discours sur la production artistique entre ceux de la critique ... more On sépare traditionnellement les discours sur la production artistique entre ceux de la critique officielle du Salon, prétendument légitime et désintéressée, et ceux du monde du commerce, souvent considéré avec méfiance par cette critique et les institutions. Cette étude s’interroge sur la place du « discours marchand » dans l’ensemble des discours sur la peinture à la fin du XVIIIe siècle.Nous abordons d’abord les origines de ce discours marchand et tentons d’en définir les contours et le profil de ses orateurs. Nous évoquons ensuite la place de ce discours face à ce qu’on appelle la « critique » au travers des trois principaux enjeux : l’autorité morale à discourir, la légitimité du jugement et la promotion d’un art édifiant et patriotique.Sur ce dernier enjeu, il apparaît à la fin du XVIIIe siècle un net rapprochement entre les deux discours. On observe en particulier que les plus importants marchands de l’époque n’hésitent pas à littéralement s’approprier la posture et le discours du critique. Cette mutation s’inscrit dans une stratégie de construction d’une image et aussi de rapprochement avec le pouvoir et les institutions, et en premier lieu le Muséum.

From the artist’s studio to the Amateur’s portfolio The modern drawing market and collecting in early nineteenth-century Paris, 2021

From the 1820s, Claude Schroth introduced himself as a ‘modern drawing dealer’. His shop, at rue ... more From the 1820s, Claude Schroth introduced himself as a ‘modern drawing dealer’. His shop, at rue de la Paix in Paris, was described by Delacroix as the first one in its genre. This market is still neglected by scholars, usually because of insufficient sources. Through analysis of the few better-documented cases, light can be shed on important aspects of collecting and the art market in the early nineteenth century. The careful study of treatises, writings by critics and Salon booklets highlights the emergence of a new reception for modern drawings in the 1790s. Then, through a comparative study of two relatively well-documented collections, of Simon Chenard and Antoine Valedau, the important role of new networks of sociability around artists will be examined and closely related to the taste for medieval and picturesque subjects of nascent romanticism. Lastly, these findings will be placed in the context of the rise in collecting modern drawings and in particular the vogue of albums and amicorum.

London and the Emergence of a European Art Market, 1780-1820 Susanna Avery-Quash, Christian Huemer, 2019

The Trumbull sale of 1797: players in the Paris-London art market during the French Revolution Sa... more The Trumbull sale of 1797: players in the Paris-London art market during the French Revolution
Sarah Bakkali, Université Paris X Nanterre
The sale of the pictures collected by the American painter John Trumbull (1756-1843), held in London in 1797, has not been extensively studied. This is striking, given that his auctioneer, James Christie, called it ‘the most important sale of this year’, and noted it as being the result of an ‘exceptionally favourable’ opportunity (William Roberts, Memorials of Christie’s: a record of art sales from 1766 to 1896, vol. 1, 1897, p. 50).
Christie refers to the fact that the paintings on sale were collected during John Trumbull’s stay in Paris in 1795. Indeed, the French capital was then overwhelmed by a flood of Old Master paintings that had been sold in a situation of crisis, especially by émigrés and families of convicted persons. Such circumstances were supposed to be highly favourable for ‘speculators’ who could, as a result, make very good deals.
Through various sources (catalogues, account books, correspondence), different aspects of the sale will be explored in this paper: John Trumbull’s acquisitions in Paris, his network and associates, his strategy and the conduct of the sale and what happened after it. Sarah Bakkali will also discuss several issues and accepted ideas around this ‘speculative adventure’, in those years when London was becoming a central place in art market of Europe.

Sociétés & Représentations n°40: Nouveaux regards sur la critique d'art au XIXe siècle, automne 2... more Sociétés & Représentations n°40: Nouveaux regards sur la critique d'art au XIXe siècle, automne 2015, p. 25-41

Le Salon et le marché de l’art moderne à Paris (1791–1799) En 1791, pour la première fois le S... more Le Salon et le marché de l’art moderne à Paris (1791–1799)

En 1791, pour la première fois le Salon ouvre ses portes aux non académiciens. Deux initiatives privées ont pu favoriser cet évènement: d'une part celle de la Société des Amis des Arts qui, en 1790, leur offre une vitrine inédite en leur permettant d'exposer dans la salle des pairs au Louvre, d'autre part celle du marchand Lebrun qui accueille, en 1789 et 1790, le Salon de la jeunesse dans sa nouvelle galerie de la rue de Cléry. Parallèlement, les salles de vente publiques continuent de présenter une quantité non négligeable de peinture moderne.
Nous proposons d'étudier le développement de ce marché au travers de plusieurs exemples, parfois méconnus, d'acteurs qui gravitent autour du Salon. Individuels ou collectifs, ces acteurs témoignent d'une forte dynamique d'émulation, dans ces années où l'air du temps est au "patriotisme".

Conference: Researching Art Market Practices from Past to Present - workshop/ 2018, 8-9 June

De l'hôtel particulier parisien d'un agent de change au musée Fabre de Montpellier : la Collectio... more De l'hôtel particulier parisien d'un agent de change au musée Fabre de Montpellier : la Collection d'Antoine Valedau (1777-1836) Avec 79 tableaux, 345 dessins et estampes, 11 bronzes et 18 objets d'art, le legs d'Antoine Valedau constitue avec ceux de François-Xavier Fabre et d'Alfred Bruyas l'un des plus importants jamais reçus par le Musée Fabre de Montpellier. Le personnage, et notamment la manière dont il a constitué sa collection, reste toutefois mal connu. C'est notamment le cas de sa partie consacrée aux arts graphiques qui a toujours été négligée. En effet, les nombreux dessins rassemblés par ce Montpelliérain de naissance laissent entrevoir un goût très personnel et très porté sur les productions et les artistes de son temps. Au travers de comparaisons avec les collections contemporaines plus particulièrement par des fournisseurs des armées et agents de change, nous souhaitons apporter un éclairage nouveau sur ce personnage, son goût et son réseau et mettre à l'épreuve le portrait brossé par Frédéric Soulié (Les français peints par eux-mêmes) : « Aussi son intérieur est-il un sanctuaire élégant des plus jolies fantaisies, des plus coûteuses bagatelles ; il y en a dans ses salons, dans le boudoir de sa femme, dans sa salle à manger et dans son antichambre : mobilier gothique, renaissance ou Louis XV, il a de tout et du meilleur goût, tout neuf, parfaitement imité (…). Mais tout cela n'est à lui que parce qu'il l'a payé ; il ne le possède pas de son coeur, de son amour, il n'en jouit que par l'envie qu'en peu recevoir un confrère. Ce n'est pas pour lui un bonheur intense, secret, personnel, c'est une preuve de la puissance de sa fortune. »

TOOLS FOR THE FUTURE: RESEARCHING ART MARKET PRACTICES FROM PAST TO PRESENT Workshop 1 – The Art Collector
Montpellier, 2018, 8-9 June