The Rococo was an 18th century European art movement, which started in France, as a response to the high-brow, dramatic and serious art of the Baroque. It was the opposite of Baroque - lighthearted, elegant, playful, tongue-in-cheek.
It also suited the patrons of France: the aristocracy.
To modern audiences, I think it would seem too treacly or disjointed from “reality”. Rightly or wrongly, today we would have disdain for those patrons, and the subject matter would strike us as being trite or frivolity overkill.
But, I think it’s a very interesting break in art history (in which everything is steeped in high meaning & context). The colours of the Rococo are also v. beautiful and even dazzling.
These are from The Wallace Collection in Mayfair.
I thought I’d share it on my blog.
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Les Champs ĂlisĂ©es by Jean-Antoine Watteau
Watteau was one of the major figures of The Rococo.
It’s about theatricality, frivolity, and the elegant/dreamy life of the aristocracy. Elegant dresses, picturesque landscape, reclining figures, smiling and laughing.
The colours are dreamy.
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Mademoiselle de Camargo Dancing by Nicolas Lancret 1730
Love it. Very Beautiful. Classic Rococo.
And a famous painting of a famous French ballerina. As Sarah McCleave writes:
By placing the dancer in a fĂȘte champĂȘtre, Lancret draws on the pastoral associations of the locale and its attendant musician-shepherds to frame Camargo as that most available and willing of mythological females, the nymph.
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Les Charmes de la vie (The Pleasures of Life) by Jean-Antoine Watteau
Love it. One of my favourites.
A classic example of Watteau’s fĂȘte galante paintings in depicting idyllic scenes of leisure among the elegantly dressed aristocracy.
I love the theatrical flair & pose of the central figure.
People flirting, playing with pets, and enjoying themselves.
You may notice the Black page boy - that’s interesting.
A Girl in a Kitchen by Nicolas Lancret (1720s)
Nicolas Lancret was another key figures of The Rococo.
He also captures the lighthearted playfulness we see in Watteau’s work.
This painting is also known as The Flea Seeker.
This lady is inspecting herself for fleas!
Fleas have a different - and more amorous - connotation in literature and art though. So, the unlaced corset (which would be a private moment) is v. easily a suggestive painting.
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Voulez vous triompher des belles by Jean-Antoine Watteau
An old-fashioned poetic phrase: “Do you want to win the hearts of beautiful women?”
“In this painting, Watteau fused the idyllic vision of the pastoral with elements of the theatre. The painting is a beautiful example of Watteau’s approach to add actors off-stage - half-way between their stage persona and their proper self - to his peaceful and idealised outdoor scenes. Harlequin can be identified by his lozenged suit and black mask.”
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Dance before a Fountain by Nicolas Lancret
Another great painting.
The colours, the imbalance of subjects, and the dynamic composition. The fluidity of the dancing aristocrats; and the grandeur of the ancient fountain.
There’s a real joy & charm to the central dancing couple.
Why a red dress? A striking detail which contrasts nicely against the muted colours of the park.
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A Gallant Conversation by Nicolas Lancret
Beautiful fete galante composition. The colour harmony is wonderful.
The radiant dresses contrast wonderfully with the subdued neighbouring gardens.
I think the standing woman appears to be rebuffing her suitor’s advances.
Otherwise, it’s flirtation and music.
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The Bird Catchers by Nicolas Lancret
Delightfully captures the spirit of The Rococo period.
Trees are wonderful - light used to create a sense of depth, detail of the foliage creates realism.
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Blind Man’s Bluff by Jean-HonorĂ© Fragonard
Scenes of games, courtship and playfulness within a pastoral setting. Very suggestive, colours are again wonderful.
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The Swing (La conversation intéressant) by Jean-Baptiste Joseph Pater
Playful romance and flirting in a park-like setting.
Briefly a pupil of Watteau.
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Italian Comedians by a Fountain by Nicolas Lancret
Light and elegant, this early composition by Lancret in the fĂȘte galante style of Watteau.
The composition centers on a group of characters from the Commedia dell’arte, a form of Italian improvised theater.
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A Tale from La Fontaine by Nicolas Lancret
This painting is from La Fontaine’s fables of the 17th century. They were based on the works of Aesop and Phaedrus, but La Fontaine gave a contemporary spin.
This one isn’t very obvious.
This fable is “The Little Dog who secretes Gold and Jewels”. The dog owner’s may be obsessed with the wealth the dog generates that they cannot enjoy the simple of pleasures of life. The spaniel conjures coins and jewels and everyone is obsessed with it.?
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FĂȘte in a Wood by Nicolas Lancret
This fete galante is part of Lancret’s series “The Four Ages of Man”, with this one specifically representing Youth.
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A Lady at her Toilet by Jean-Antoine Watteau
Beautiful pastel work.
A different window in the aristocratic life, and quite suggestive. Can be no doubt about the affluence of this lady. She is seen putting on or removing her top, while her maid attends to her with a gown.
This licentious subject was controversial:
The Watteau paintings present a rare opportunity to reassess this artist’s impact on the course of art history. Watteau’s artistic innovations went beyond his invention of the fĂȘte galante. The French tradition of depicting the female nude in a domestic setting, rather than as a goddess or a nymph, began in the 18th century. Watteau’s A Lady at her Toilet in the Wallace Collection is an early example of what might have been considered a controversial painting in its day and is one of only three surviving paintings by the artist in this new erotic genre. Watteau is said to have later repented and ordered that these paintings should be destroyed on this death.
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