Giuseppe Castiglione et le renouveau du portrait impérial au XVIIIe s.

The celebration of the emperor, in China, before the Qing, was transmitted much less than in Europe by the image of the monarch. A change appeared with the three great Qing emperors, Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong who constructed the celebration of the sovereign in a different way from what had been done before them. In this building of an imperial image, the portraits of European monarchs which were brought to them as presents, often in the form of miniatures, served certainly as models. They contributed to influence the idea that the Chinese court had of the portraiture. At the same time, the promotion of the private portrait in the 17th century Chinese society also played a part. Moreover, the desire for true-to-life portraits at court was served by the presence, from the end of 17th century, of European painters who taught their art to Chinese disciples. This paper tries to show the revival through examples taken mainly among the portraits of emperor Qianlong. The majority of these paintings are by the Italian Jesuit Giuseppe Castiglione (Lang Shining 1688-1766) and show the role he has played in this revival. To innovate, accepting at the same time the constraints of tradition, Castiglione used the European art of the miniature, which represents the procedure best adapted to what was demanded of him.