#dibutades

The Origin of Painting, or Dibutades Drawing the Portrait of his Lover

Artist: Jean Baptiste Regnault (French, 1754-1829)

Date: 1785

Medium: Oil on canvas

The Origin of Painting, Dibutades Tracing the Portrait of her Lover (1714-1717). Jean Raoux (French, 1677-1734). Oil on canvas.

Joseph Wright of Derby (British, 1734-1797)

The myth about the origin of painting is a love story. In his Natural History (circa 77-79AD) Pliny the Elder tells the story of Butades of Corinth. "It was through his daughter [Kora] that he made the discovery; who, being deeply in love with a young man about to depart on a long journey, traced the profile of his face, as thrown upon the wall by the light of the lamp." [x]

From the mid-to-late 18th century until the early 19th century, The Origin of Painting was a mildly popular sub-genre.