Émile-Jean Sulpis (22 May 1856, Paris - 31 December 1942, Paris) was a French engraver and designer.
Biography
His father was the architectural engraver, , with whom he is often confused.Henri Béraldi and L. Conquet, Les graveurs du XIXe siècle : guide de l'amateur d'estampes modernes, Vol.12, Paris, 1885-1892 (Online) After studies at home, he entered the École Estienne, where his primary instructors were Alexandre Cabanel and Louis-Pierre Henriquel-Dupont. He would later become a teacher there.« Les illustres » sur ecole-estienne.paris.
His first showing was at the Salon in 1880. He would be a regular exhibitor there, and was awarded a first-class medal in 1894. Meanwhile, he won the Prix de Rome in 1884, and was at the Villa Medici from 1885 to 1888."Les pensionnaires de la Villa Médicis" @ the Villa Medici website
He obtained the Grand Prize at the Exposition Universelle in 1900. That same year, he was named a Knight in the Legion of Honor.Documentation @ the Base Léonore In 1908, he participated in the Franco-British Exhibition in London, where he presented "Wisdom Overcoming the Vices", after a painting by Andrea Mantegna in the Louvre.Exposition franco-britannique de Londres, 1908. Catalogue spécial officiel de la section française, Comité français des expositions à l'étranger, Paris, 1908, p. 275 Although he did original work, during his lifetime he was primarily known for his interpretations of the Renaissance masters who, in addition to Mantegna, included Dürer, Michelangelo, Jan van Eyck and Bruegel (the Elder).
In 1911, he retired from his position at the École Etienne, and was replaced by Mathurin Méheut, professor of watercolors at the École Boulle. Shortly after, he was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts, where he took Seat #1 for engraving, succeeding Léopold Flameng (deceased). He would occupy that seat for thirty-one years, until his own death at the age of eighty-six.
References
Further reading Henri Guérard, Les jades, planches gravées par H. Guérard, Ch. Courtry, Géry-Bichard, Émile Sulpis, Rod. Piguet, P. Le Rat, Paris, 1892, 1 vol. folio Noël Clément-Janin, "Émile Sulpis", In: La Revue de l'art ancien et moderne, August 1923, (Online)
External links
Entry on Sulpis @ the Bibliothèque nationale de France Biographical data and references from the Comité des travaux historiques et scientifiques @ La France Savante