The devotional paintings of Jacques Stella
Stella devoted an extensive part of his oeuvre to glorifying the Virgin Mary. While the artist's personal devotion undoubtedly plays a role in this choice, the context is also favourable, since Louis XIII had dedicated his kingdom to the Virgin.
Le Mariage de la Vierge (The Marriage of the Virgin) marks Stella's contribution, alongside Philippe de Champaigne to one of the great décors initiated by Louis XIII and Richelieu, the tapestries for the choir in Notre-Dame de Paris. This tapestry cartoon, housed in the Musée des Augustins since 1812, is a masterpiece of classical grace and harmony. The tapestry created in 1650 has been preserved in Strasbourg cathedral since 1739.
A comparison between the Holy Families from Cherbourg, Dijon and Toulouse demonstrates the artist's ability to repeat figures and fragments of a composition without compromising his capacity for invention and renewal.
He was also the author of a cycle of drawings, designed to be engraved on the theme of La Vie de la Vierge (The Life of the Virgin).
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