Background
Colombel was born at Sotteville, near Rouen, in about 1644.
Colombel was born at Sotteville, near Rouen, in about 1644.
He went to Rome when quite young, and remained there until 1692, forming his style by a study of the works of Raphael and Nicolas Poussin. His pictures met with considerable success, but most later critics dismissed him as a mere imitator of Poussin. He was admitted into the Academy of Street Luke at Rome in 1686, and in 1694 into that of Paris.
The Louvre possesses the Mars and Rhea Sylvia, which he painted for his reception to the Academy, and a work representing the Saint Hyacinth Saving the Statue of the Virgin from the Enemies of the Name of Christ.
He was employed by Louis XIV at both Versailles and Meudon. He died in Paris in 1717.
An exhibition of Colombel"s work was held between November 2012 and February 2013 at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Rouen.
Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture.