François Derand

François Derand (born between 1588 and 1591, Vic-sur-Seille; died 29 October 1644, Agde ) was a French Jesuit architect.

Life

After studying for the noviciate in Rouen, then at the Jesuit college in La Flèche (where he taught maths for two years), he was ordained a priest in 1621 and entered the Society of Jesus. Initially he lived in Rouen then Rennes, where he was consulted on the work to rebuild the Cathédrale Sainte-Croix d'Orléans. In 1629, he moved to complete the Église Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis, begun by Étienne Martellange. He also took part in several other works - the altarpiece of Laval and the high altar of the Jesuit church at La Flèche. In 1643 he published 'L’architecture des voûtes', a treatise on stereotomy that is considered his masterwork. He was summoned to Agde the same year and died there in 1644. He was buried in the Jesuit college at Béziers.