The Rococo style developed around 1730 in Paris, France. Rococo art features soft colors, curvy lines, and a focus on light entertainment. Paintings depict scenes of giddy love, nature, amorous encounters, and a care-free lifestyle.
Rococo is associated with the reign of King Louis XV and is a reaction to the grandiose, ornamented style of his predecessor, Louis XIV. Rich colors were replaced with lighter pastels, and the subject matter became less exalted and more hedonistic.
The quintessential example of Rococo art is the painting by French artist, Jean Honore Fragonard called The Swing.
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| THE SWING (1767) - FRAGONARD |
The painting features an elegant young woman on a rope swing with her young lover hiding in the bushes at an angle that allows him to look up her dress. The swing is being pushed by an older man who is unaware of the young lover's presence. The dog in the bottom right of the painting is barking at the lover in the bushes while the statue on the left side has his finger to his lips trying to shush the dog so the lover is not discovered. The young lady's slipper flies off in mid-swing symbolizing the frivolous nature of the scene.
The Swing is located in London, UK in a free museum known as the Wallace Collection.
The primary mistress of King Louis XV was Madame de Pompadour, a highly influential intellectual who was an advisor to the king, a lady in waiting to the queen, and a generous patron of the arts. The Rococo style was greatly influenced by Pompadour, who stimulated innovation and sponsored artists of the period.
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| MADAME DE POMPADOUR (1755) - MAURICE QUENTIN DE LA TOUR |
Many portraits of Madame De Pompadour exist. The 1755 portrait by Maurice Quentin de La Tour is located in Paris, France at the Louvre Museum.
Another famous Rococo artist was Francois Boucher. Boucher's 1749 painting entitled The Music Lesson is one of his most well known.
The Music Lesson is located in Paris, France at a free museum called the Musee Cognaco-Jay.
Boucher's 1759 portrait of Madame de Pompadour is located in London, UK at the Wallace Collection.
Another famous Rococo artist was Francois Boucher. Boucher's 1749 painting entitled The Music Lesson is one of his most well known.
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| THE MUSIC LESSON (1749) - FRANCOIS BOCHER |
The Music Lesson is located in Paris, France at a free museum called the Musee Cognaco-Jay.
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| MADAME DE POMPADOUR (1759) - FRANCOIS BOUCHER |
Boucher's 1759 portrait of Madame de Pompadour is located in London, UK at the Wallace Collection.
