The Genius of France between Liberty and Death

Regnault was not a prolific painter and he never completely freed himself of the Baroque ideal of Guido Reni and the Carraccis. But his subjects are usually taken from Antiquity, as in his first successful work, which won the Rome prize in 1776, the Education of Achilles.

The Genius of France between Liberty and Death is one of the works in which the influence of David is still evident, particularly in the rendering of the material. But the recourse to Baroque models is undeniable in the composition of this allegorical scene which has a complex set of references to Christian iconography.