La surprise

1769–1804

The quarrel with the Academy and his withdrawal from the Salons

Greatly incensed by the director’s words, Greuze quarrels with his confrères and ceases to exhibit until 1804, when the Revolution had thrown open the doors of the Academy to all the world.

1789–1799

The Revolution years: seclusion and the Nine Sisters lodge

During the Great French Revolution Greuze lives in seclusion and keeps out of politics, although he is a Freemason and belongs to the well-known lodge Les Neuf Sœurs.

c. 1800

Ruin and oblivion

Towards the end of his life Greuze, who had considerable wealth, loses it in risky ventures and through his wife’s ruinous spending; he is left almost in poverty, forgotten by contemporaries whose tastes had been taken over by Jacques-Louis David’s new painting.