The Artist

Jean Clouet (c. 1485-1541) was the most important portrait artist at the French royal court. In 1516, he became one of the official King’s Painters, and around 1530 he painted the most famous portrait ever made of Francis I. Clouet is considered the artistic equal of the German painter Hans Holbein the Younger, who made the most famous portrait of King Henry VIII of England.

French embassy