181 - JACQUES COURTOIS LE BOURGUIGNON (1621–1676), attributed

JACQUES COURTOIS LE BOURGUIGNON (1621–1676), attributed Cavalry Battle on a Bridge Oil on canvas, unframed Dimensions: 48 x 72.5 cm - Jacques Courtois, also known as Giacomo Cortese, was a Jesuit friar from Franche-Comté, commonly referred to as “the Burgundian of Battles,” “il Borgognone,” or “Giacomo Borgognone.” He received his first lessons in painting from his father, Jean Courtois. In 1636, in Milan, he enlisted in a Franche-Comté regiment serving the Spanish. Those three years (1636–1639) had a profound influence on the themes of his paintings: military marches, sieges, and encampments. His paintings are strikingly realistic. In 1640, he was in Rome, where his first major work brought him recognition: *The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes* (1641). Upon his wife’s death in 1654, he traveled and stayed in northern Italy—Bergamo and its surrounding region, as well as Venice—where he created works for palaces and churches. In Siena, in 1657, Jacques Courtois applied for admission to the Society of Jesus. He was accepted as a lay brother; he was 36 years old at the time. He was sent to Rome to complete his novitiate at Sant’Andrea del Quirinale. In 1672, at the request of the Superior General, Jean-Paul Oliva, he prepared sketches for the decoration of the apse of the Church of the Gesù, but his declining health prevented him from completing the project.