Charles Le Brun was also the primary influence on the artistic activity of François Verdier. He first served as his teacher at the Academy, then later offered him, along with numerous others, work on major royal commissions in the Galerie d'Apollon at the Louvre, in Versailles, and at the Trianon. Even Verdier's stay at the Académie de France in Rome in 1679/80 failed to lessen his dependence on Le Brun.
After his master's death in 1690, as professor at the Academy, Verdier first completed the commissioned works begun for the Trianon until 1698. He then appears in the royal account books with less frequency, since he devoted himself more exclusively to drawing and graphics.
Verdier's clear indebtedness to Le Brun's example is expressed in his direct borrowing of his figural inventions on the one hand, and in his imitation of his drawing style on the other. For that reason, of the countless works attributed to Le Brun, it could be possible on closer inspection to attribute a number of them to François Verdier.
