Pierre Drevet; Hyacinthe Rigaud

Pierre Drevet, working in collaboration with the celebrated portraitist Hyacinthe Rigaud, was active in the European printmaking sphere between 1663 and 1730. Their combined output focused on translating the era’s grand portrait paintings into copperplate engravings and etchings, ensuring the wide distribution of images of notable individuals.

The National Gallery of Art holds eleven prints representing this partnership. This selection of high-quality prints documents the reproductive expertise required to translate Rigaud’s painterly texture into linear detail. Works represented in the museum collection include portraits of Jean Paul Bignon, Abbe du St. Quentin, Fine de Brianville, and Leonard de Lamet. The collection also features the familial study Maria Serre, Mater Hyacinth Rigaud, alongside a portrait of Hyacinthe Rigaud himself, suggesting Drevet worked directly from source materials provided by the master painter. Today, many of these historical works are available as public domain resources, allowing further study of the technical collaborations common in Baroque art production.