NICOLAS RÉGNIER (Maubeuge 1588 – Venice 1667)
CIRCE (late 1650s – early 1660s)
oil on canvas
44 x 53 ½ inches (112 x 135 cm.)
COMING OF AGE IN ROME
Nicolas Régnier led, in some ways, the typical painter’s life in the 17th century. He studied in Antwerp and then followed his training and his heart to Rome. It was a long journey, but as with many artists of the day, travel to Italy became a rite of passage. Often encompassing a difficult and in many cases dangerous journey, artists would spend years getting to Italy, using their artistic talents to pay their way. Many never made it all the way to Italy, and many never attempted the trip back once they got there.
These young artists upon arrival in Rome brought with them a strong sense of self-confidence, developed through their work experiences. They no longer relied on institutional recognition and felt empowered to live by their own rules. Rome provided them with an inspiring backdrop, allowing them to explore their individuality and make their mark on the art world.
Many of these wayward artists formed their own groups to support each other in this foreign land. The largest, comprised of mostly Dutch and Flemish artists, was called the Bentvueghels (Birds of a Feather). The Bentvueghels was comprised of young mostly Northern European painters. Picture a university fraternity with all the shenanigans and trouble making! Nicolas Régnier, it is said, was a founding member of the Bent, together with his roommates, Dutch painters David de Haen and Dirk van Baburen, both of whom were part of the Northern Caravaggesque movement. This group of artistic troublemakers’ main purpose was to provide mutual support, friendship, and inspiration to each other. They organized social gatherings, shared studio spaces, and often embarked on sketching trips to the countryside around Rome.
The Bentvueghels also had a somewhat notorious but playful set of rituals created to mock the establishment and provide a shared experience within the group. These rituals included an initiation where the new member had to host (and pay) a banquet for all the current members. He was also required to perform various other rituals including drinking wine out of a skull while standing on one leg and executing an artistic challenge. These events often ended with a march to the church of Santa Costanza, known popularly at the time as the Temple of Bacchus- the Bentvueghels de-facto leader! The Bentvueghels had a tradition of using nicknames to foster this sense of identity and camaraderie among its members that tends to allude newcomers to a foreign land. Régnier earned the nickname "Il Ribelle" (The Rebel) due to his spirited personality and independent artistic style, while de Haen was called “Buckingham” and van Baburen was "Biervlieg" (Beer Fly, a heavy drinker). You can already tell these guys were having a lot of fun.
Considering that Rome was under the rule of the Catholic Church, it is intriguing that the Bentvueghels were able to engage in such provocative behavior towards not only the Catholic Church but also Rome’s Accademia di San Luca ("Academy of Saint Luke"), without facing significant repercussions, given their patron was the pope’s nephew, Cardinal Francesco Barberini. One possible reason for this leniency could be the tolerance and openness to artistic expression that existed within certain circles of the Catholic Church at the time. Some members of the clergy and the aristocracy were patrons of the arts and recognized the importance of artistic freedom and creativity. It is more likely that the Church recognized the potential of art to communicate religious messages effectively and win back followers.
Nicolas Régnier at some point started to get more serious about his career. Maybe it was the death of his friend David de Haen, whom he then replaced as the household painter at the palace of Marchese Vincenzo Giustiniani, a rich banker and prominent patron of Caravaggio. Or maybe it was that after all the partying he found a wife. He was Giustiniani's official painter and resided during the period 1622–1623 at Giustiniani's palace on the Piazza San Luigi dei Francesi until he married Cecilia Bezzi in 1623 and left Giustiniani's household.
Ironically, the last record of him being in Rome was on March 22, 1625, Régnier was present at a reunion of the Accademia di San Luca at Simon Vouet's house. So, it turns out he was a member of both the Bents and the Accademia!
By 1626, Régnier had moved to Venice and settled down. His art reflects this calmer more mature life. In Venice he moved away from the Caravaggesque style and towards a more polished and elegant one. His sitters are also more elegant, his religious scenes more refined. His Bentvueghel days behind him, he had become a mature adult. He fathered four children and started dealing in art. You could say that Régnier’s story is a universal coming of age story of a boy who followed his dreams, sowed his wild oats, and then established a successful family and career by learning from his experiences. This is what makes art special. An artist in his oeuvre can show you his experiences and his growth through paint on a canvas 400 years ago and we can all relate to it today.
21 June 2023