 Historical Background

o Began to decline in the 1760s, but still had a definite prescence until the
1790s
o “Rocaille” refers to small stones/shells found n Grottoes, artificial caves
that were prominent in landscape design during this period
o Baroque was sensible and serious whereas Rococo was more about having
fun and enjoying life
o Reflected the aristocracy in that the aristocrats had time to enjoy life
o “Rococo art portrayed a world of artificiality, make-believe, and game
playing…it was essentially an art of the aristocracy and emphasized what
seems now to have been the unreflective and indulgent lifestyles of the
aristocracy rather than piety, morality, self-discipline, reason, and heroism
(all of which are found in the Baroque)”
o end of the Rococo period, the French began to view it as “symptomatic of
a wide-spread cultural decadence, epitomized by the luxurious lifestyle of
the aristocracy”
 Characteristics of Painting
o Pastel colors
o Pastel colors
o a light-hearted mood
o curving forms, and fanciful figures
o Very sensuous
 Jean-Honoré Fragonard
o 1732–1806
o After 1765, however, he worked in the rococo style then fashionable in
France
 reflect the gaiety, frivolity, and voluptuousness
o gracefully posed figures
o rarely dated his works
o soft tones and colors of the palate critical to his work
o won the Prix de Rome
o The Swing
 scandal behind it
 nobleman w/ view up the lady's skirt
 being pushed into this position by her priest-lover, shown in the
rear.
 Girl thoroughly enjoying having the attention of two men and
being pushed on the swing
o The Stolen Kiss
 late period was marked by his careful study of the Dutch 17th-
century masters
 smooth, enamel-like surface
 blended brushstrokes used to convey the details
 subject itself is a pretty and amusing
  grace and lightness in the movements of the two heroes typical of
French art of the time
 Maiden weakly resists nobleman’s kiss
 Francois Boucher
 delicate, lighthearted depictions of classical divinities and
well-dressed French shepherdesses delighted the public
 considered most fashionable painter during his time
 studied in Rome from 1727 to 1731
 became a faculty member of the Royal Academy in 1734
 designed for the Beauvais tapestry works
 1765 he was made first painter to the French king
 1765 designer for the Royal Porcelain Works