Died 1722
Copenhagen Education Ecole des Beaux-Arts Movement Rococo Name Benoit Coffre | Nationality Danish Known for Painting Awards Prix de Rome | |
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Born 1671 Copenhagen, Denmark | ||
Benoit Le Coffre (1671 – 1722) was a Danish painter of French descent. He became King Frederick IV's Court Painter in 1700 and is considered the earliest representative of light Rococo painting in Denmark.
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Biography
Benoit Le Coffre was born in Copenhagen in 1671 to Claude Le Coffre who was also a painter as well as a sculptor with important commissions for the Court. Benoit was sent to Paris where he studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. He won the Prix de Rome in 1792 but seems not to have continued his studies in Rome. Little is known about his early career and whereabouts but back in Denmark in 1700 he became Frederick IV's Court Painter alongside Hendrick Krock, the king's other Court Painter.
Works
His work includes portraits as well as many decorative works for the many royal residences. At Frederiksberg Palace, which was built just after the turn of the century, he painted 12 frescos featuring both scenes from antique mythology and swarming royal masquerade balls with musicians and masked participants. Other buildings with decorative works by him include Rosenborg Castle, the Eremitage Lodge and the Chancellery building in Copenhagen.