Charles-Joseph Natoire was first tutored by his father, the sculptor Florent Natoire, before continuing his apprenticeship under Louis Galloche and further study with his most influential teacher, the renowned draftsman, François Lemoyne. Natoire’s drawing skills, perfected under Lemoyne, helped him secure the Prix de Rome and launch a successful career designing tapestries and paintings of allegorical and mythological scenes for royal residences at Versailles, Marly, Fontainebleau, and other locations, in addition to tutoring students. Appointed the Director of the Académie de France in Rome when he was fifty, Natoire then moved to Italy where he spent the rest of his life.