Rome welcome the tapestry series The Story of Moses after eight paintings by Poussin and two by Le Brun, now on display to the public at the Galerie des Gobelins. The visit establishes a dialogue among the preparatory drawings, the paintings – those available for loan -, the cartoons – those which were found – and the tapestries, clearly explaining the whole creative process of which three weavings were produced before the 1680’s.

These cartoons were known as they were documented in the inventories for the Gobelins and the Louvre, to where they were transferred before being misplaced while in storage at the Mobilier National. This is because most of the 17th century cartoons are cut in strips, making it more difficult to preserve over the centuries. After the Mobilier National undertook a thorough examination of hundreds of strips which were rolled up in storage in order to put them on cylinders for better conservation, the cartoon for The Manna resurfaced in 2011 and was restored for the Rome exhibition.

Nicolas Poussin (June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for a small group of Italian and French collectors. He returned to Paris for a brief period to serve as First Painter to the King under Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu, but soon returned to Rome and resumed his more traditional themes. In his later years he gave growing prominence to the landscapes in his pictures. His work is characterized by clarity, logic, and order, and favors line over color. Until the 20th century he remained a major inspiration for such classically-oriented artists as Jacques-Louis David, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and Paul Cézanne.