Louis Bélanger was a distinguished French landscape painter and a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts.
Born in Paris, Bélanger trained under Louis-Gabriel Moreau (1740-1806), a landscape painter, and Francesco Casanova (1727-1803), known for battle scenes, before widening his sphere of reference through exploration. He travelled through France, the Alps, and Switzerland initially, and stayed for five years in Rome.
Following this extensive education, he returned to Paris but was forced to flee to London, as many did, due to the Revolution. Here he remained for around eight years, exhibiting at the Royal Academy during this time, before settling in Stockholm, Sweden.
He’s known predominantly for depicting gnarled portrayals of the Swedish countryside, rugged and lively. He aimed to produce a large-scale work titled ‘Voyage Pittoresque de la Suéde’, consisting of numerous engravings, but it was sadly never completed.
His period in Stockholm brought with it several honours including membership of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts and his appointment as ‘First Painter’ to Gustaf IV Adolf, King of Sweden. Today, alongside the eminent Elias Martin ARA (1739-1818), he’s considered as one of the country’s most significant contributors to the evolution of landscape painting. Carl Johan Fahlcrantz (1774-1861) was one of his pupils.
He’s represented in numerous public collections including at the National Museum in Stockholm, Gothenburg Art Museum, Malmö Museum, and Norrköpings Art Museum.
Exhibited
Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts.
Public Collections
National Museum in Stockholm, Gothenburg Art Museum, Malmö Museum, Lund University Historical Museum, Norrköpings Art Museum.
Timeline
Elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts.
Became ‘First Painter’ to Gustaf IV Adolf, King of Sweden.
1816
Died in Stockholm, Sweden.
1756
Born in Paris, France.
Trained under Francesco Casanova (1727-1803), known for battle scenes (and for being the younger brother of ‘that’ Casanova), and Louis-Gabriel Moreau (1740-1806), a landscape painter.
1780-1785
Probably lived in Rome, Italy.
Returned to France.
1790-1798
Lived in London.
Exhibited at the Royal Academy, London.
Created works intended for distribution as prints.
1798
Moved to Stockholm, where he settled.
Elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts.
Became ‘First Painter’ to Gustaf IV Adolf, King of Sweden.
1816
Died in Stockholm, Sweden.