La Hire, Laurent de

▪ French painter

La Hire also spelled  La Hyre  

born Feb. 27, 1606, Paris, Fr.

died Dec. 28, 1656, Paris

      French Baroque classical painter whose best work is marked by gravity, simplicity, and dignity.

      He was the son of the painter Étienne de La Hire (c. 1583–1643) but was most influenced by the work of Georges Lallemont and Orazio Gentileschi. His picture of “Pope Nicolas V at the Tomb of Saint Francis” was done in 1630 for the Capuchins, for whom he executed several other works. For the goldsmiths' company he produced in 1635 “St. Peter Healing the Sick” and the “Conversion of St. Paul” in 1637. In 1648, with 11 other artists, he helped found the French Royal Academy. Cardinal Richelieu called him to the Palais-Royal about 1640 to paint decorative mythological scenes, and he later designed a series of tapestries for the Gobelins.

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