Biographies

Philibert Louis Debucourt (1755 – 1832) Although a painter by training, Philibert-Louis Debucourt is primarily renowned as one of the most innovative colour printmakers of the eighteenth century. Born in 1781, he studied with Joseph Marie Vien at the French Academy. After several years of exhibiting his paintings at the Salon, he turned to printmaking in 1781. During the mid 1780s, he began experimenting with the complicated multiple-plate colour printing process, a technique that was refined and revolutionized by Jean-François Janinet. Debucourt found success with his colour intaglio prints of Parisian high society, and he quickly earned a reputation as a skilled and prolific engraver. The bulk of his prints, however, were based on paintings by other artists and completed after the turn of the century. Despite his intense focus on printmaking, he continued to exhibit his paintings alongside his engravings at the Salon throughout his life.