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The fine arts of the 18th century, in the best works, are characterized by analysis of the subtlest human experiences, reproduction of the nuances of feelings and moods. Intimacy, lyricism of images, but also analytical observation are characteristic features of the art of the 18th century, both in the genre of portraiture and in everyday painting. These properties of artistic perception of life are the contribution of the 18th century to the development of world artistic culture, although it should be recognized that this was achieved at the cost of the loss of universal completeness in the depiction of spiritual life, integrity in the embodiment of the aesthetic views of society, characteristic of the painting of Rubens, Velazquez, Rembrandt, Poussin.

ROCOCO (“bizarre”, “capricious”; French rococo from rocaille fragments of stones, shells), a style movement that dominated European art during the first three quarters of the 18th century. It represented not so much an independent artistic phenomenon as a phase, a certain stage of the pan-European Baroque style. The term “rococo” arose in France at the end of the 18th century, during the heyday of classicism, as a contemptuous nickname for all the mannered and pretentious art of the 18th century: a curved, capricious line, reminiscent of the outline of a shell, its main feature. Rococo art is a world of fiction and intimate experiences, decorative theatricality, sophistication, sophisticated sophistication; there is no place in it for heroism and pathos; they are replaced by a game of love, fantasy, and charming trinkets. The main themes of Rococo painting are the exquisite life of the court aristocracy, idyllic pictures of “shepherd” life against the backdrop of pristine nature, the world of complex love affairs and ingenious allegories. Human life is instantaneous and fleeting, and therefore we must seize the “happy moment”, hurry to live and feel. “The spirit of charming and airy little things” becomes the leitmotif of the work of many artists of the “royal style”.

Francois Boucher Francois Boucher (1703-1770) considered himself a faithful student of Watteau. Some called him “the artist of the graces”, “Anacreon of painting”, “royal painter”. Others saw him as an artist - a “hypocrite” who “has everything but the truth.” Still others noted skeptically: “His hand gathers roses where others find only thorns.” Francois Boucher (1703-1770) considered himself a faithful student of Watteau. The artist painted a number of portraits of the favorite of King Louis XV, the Marquise de Pompadour. It is known that she patronized Boucher and more than once ordered him paintings of religious subjects for country residences and Parisian mansions. In the painting “Madame de Pompadour,” the heroine is presented surrounded by scattered flowers and luxurious objects, reminiscent of her artistic tastes and hobbies. She reclines regally against the backdrop of lush, solemn draperies. The book in her hand is a clear hint of enlightenment and commitment to intellectual pursuits. The Marquise generously thanked the artist. Having appointed him director of the Gobelin Manufactory, and then awarded him the title of “the first painter of the king.

Francois Boucher more than once turned to the depiction of frivolous scenes, the main characters of which were cutesy, shy shepherdesses or plump naked beauties in the form of mythological Venuses and Dianas. His paintings are replete with ambiguous hints, piquant details (the raised hem of the satin skirt of the shepherdess, the coquettishly raised leg of the bathing Diana, a finger pressed to her lips, an eloquent, inviting look, symbolically kissing doves, etc.) The artist knew the fashion and tastes of his era perfectly well!

In the history of painting, Francois Boucher remains a magnificent master of color and exquisite design. Witty compositions, unusual angles of the characters, bizarre silhouettes of almost theatrical scenery, rich color accents, bright reflections of transparent paints applied in small, light strokes, smooth flowing rhythms - all this makes F. Boucher an unsurpassed master of painting. His paintings turn into decorative panels, decorate the lush interiors of halls and living rooms, they call to the world of happiness, love and beautiful dreams.

FRAGONARD Jean Honore French painter and engraver, the greatest master of the era of Louis XVI. became famous for his masterfully executed gallant and everyday scenes, in which the elegance of Rococo is combined with fidelity to nature, the subtlety of light-air effects, and majestic ancient ruins. Along with works created on the basis of real observations, he also creates improvised pastorals, he reproduces the scene with such vividness that it seems painted from life.

Antoine Watteau– contemporaries called him “the poet of carefree leisure” and “gallant festivities”, “the singer of grace and beauty”. In his works, he depicted picnics in evergreen parks, music and theater concerts in the lap of nature, passionate confessions and quarrels of lovers, idyllic dates, balls and masquerades. At the same time, his paintings contain a painful sadness. A feeling of the transience of beauty and the ephemerality of what is happening.

Watteau found himself, his theme, when he arrived in Paris: these are the so-called gallant festivities - an aristocratic society in the park, playing music, dancing, idle; painting, in which there seems to be no action or plot - scenes of carefree life, conveyed with refined grace. All this is seen as if from the outside by a subtle, slightly ironic observer with a touch of melancholy and sadness. Watteau's coloring - one of the strongest qualities of his talent - is built on subtle nuances of gray, brown, pale lilac, yellow-pink tones. There is never a pure tone in Watteau's paintings. How all the subtlest shades of love are given in color. In 1717, the artist created one of his largest works, “Pilgrimage to the Island of Cythera.” This picture reflects the subtlest palette of feelings, which, first of all, is created by the color itself. But all this is not love, but a game of love, theater.

Fedor Stepanovich Rokotov- famous Russian portrait artist, Academician of painting at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts (1765). The life of Fyodor Stepanovich Rokotov, the most poetic portrait painter of the 18th century, remained a mystery for a long time. The artist, who enjoyed enormous fame during his lifetime, was forgotten for a whole century after his death.
His paintings are in many museums in large and small cities of Russia and, unfortunately, his beautiful portraits are called “Portrait of an Unknown Woman”. The formation of F.S. Rokotov’s personality was influenced by his acquaintance with M.V. Lomonosov. It seems that the theme of human dignity, which sounds so clearly in Rokotov’s portraits, was determined not without the influence of the brilliant scientist and writer that Lomonosov was. Only the 20th century returned the name of F.S. Rokotov to Russian art. But even now many people know about him as the author of one or two paintings.

William Hogarth- English graphic artist and genre painter, founder and major representative of the national school of painting, Hogarth - an outstanding illustrator, author of satirical engravings, discoverer of new genres in painting and graphics. He became famous for his satirical drawings and realistic portraits. The artist, who was influenced by the ideas of Enlightenment philosophers, subordinated many of his works to the task of educating, through artistic creativity, the moral principle in man and the eradication of vices.

The most famous works of William Hogarth: series of engravings “Fashionable marriage”, “Career of a prostitute”, “Career of a spendthrift”, “Parliamentary elections”, engravings “Beer Street”, “Gin Lane”, “Characters and caricatures”, paintings “Self-portrait”, “Portrait of Captain Corem” , “Girl with Shrimp.”

Probably, in every style and genre of fine art one can name those representatives who are their personification. So, for example, in Renaissance painting Michelangelo and Raphael triumph, in Baroque - Peter Paul Rubens, in Art Nouveau - Gustav Klimt and Alphonse Mucha.
And if we talk about the fine art of Rococo, then first of all the names of such masters as Antoine WATTO and Francois BOUCHER come to mind.

Antoine WATTO

Francois BOUCHER

The main themes of Rococo painting are the exquisite life of the court aristocracy, “gallant festivities”, idyllic pictures of “shepherd” life against the backdrop of pristine nature (the so-called pastoral painting. Remember the tapestry “Shepherdess”, supposedly hanging in the house of the leader of the nobility Ippolit Matveyevich Vorobyaninov, about whom did the unforgettable Ostap Bender pretend to remember when meeting with archivist Korobeinikov?), a world of complex love intrigues and cunning allegories.

Human life is short and fleeting, so one must seize the “happy moment,” hurry and feel - this is what many French aristocrats of the 18th century believed, far from the ideas of the philosophers of the Enlightenment, who brought closer what happened in 1789. Mired in hedonism and epicureanism, they were unable to offer virtually any resistance to the revolutionary wave that swept away both them and the world of “refined pleasures” they were accustomed to. And it is not by chance that after the French Revolution of 1789 and the Jacobin Terror, art again made a sharp turn, as a result of which such a style as the Empire style arose.

By the way, aren't some historical parallels obvious?

In a previous post about the Rococo style, I already wrote that its successor, more than a century later, could well be considered Art Nouveau. The extraordinary popularity of Art Nouveau in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century in everything from architecture and fine arts to literature and fashion is largely explained by the same hedonism, this time of the Russian aristocracy and intelligentsia (after all, the 20th century, not the 18th). In addition to this, there is also decadence, extremely fashionable among the youth of Russia at the beginning of the twentieth century. The poet M. Kuzmin, who praised “the spirit of beautiful and airy little things” in Russia at the beginning of the last century, is certainly in the same semantic wave with the favorite of Louis XV, the Marquise of Pompadour, who declared: “After us there may be a flood.”

As you know, this “flood” was not long in coming either in pre-revolutionary France or pre-revolutionary Russia. And the fact that in the end in the USSR, after experiments with constructivism in the spirit of Corbusier, an essentially eclectic style, called the “Stalinist Empire style,” triumphed, also says a lot (although, of course, what is called the “Stalinist Empire style”, with from an architectural point of view, not quite Empire style).

However, this took me somewhat into cultural and historical parallelism. Let's return to Rococo painting, that is, to the 18th century.

For most Rococo painters, Venus, Diana, nymphs and cupids eclipse all other deities of ancient mythology, not to mention Christian subjects, which are completely ignored. All kinds of “bathing”, “morning toilets” and instant pleasures are now perhaps the main subject of the image.
Exotic color names are in fashion: “the color of the thigh of a frightened nymph” (flesh), “the color of a rose floating in milk” (pale pink), “the color of lost time” (blue), etc. Clearly thought out, dignified compositions of classicism give way to an elegant and sophisticated design.

Antoine WATTO (1684 - 1721) contemporaries called him “a poet of carefree leisure”, “a singer of grace and beauty”. In his works, he depicted picnics in evergreen parks, musical and theatrical concerts in the lap of nature, passionate confessions and quarrels of lovers, idyllic dates, balls and masquerades. At the same time, his paintings contain a painful sadness, a sense of the transience of beauty and the ephemeral nature of what is happening.

But this painting by Antoine Watteau, created in 1720 as a sign for the performances of traveling comedians, is his true masterpiece. It is called "Gilles."

Gilles is one of the main characters of the French comedy of masks, in tune with Pierrot, the hero of the Italian commedia dell'arte. A clumsy, naive creature as if specially created for the constant ridicule and tricks of the clever and cunning Harlequin. In the awkward pose of the comedian, standing lost and motionless in front of the audience, one can feel his futile search for an interlocutor who can listen and understand him. But in vain. Hidden in the tired and sad appearance of the clown is the thought of the loneliness of a man forced to amuse and entertain a bored audience. In this picture, Antoine Watteau seemed to have made an attempt to step over the hedonistic mores prevailing in his contemporary society, which is where the greatness of his talent lies.

"Gilles" - the main masterpiece of Antoine Watteau, who died at the age of 36, was written by him shortly before his death. I think there is no need to comment on this.

Francois BOUCHER (1703 - 1770) considered himself a faithful student of Antoine Watteau. Some called him “the artist of the graces”, “Anacreon of painting”, “royal painter”. The latter saw in him “an artist-hypocrite,” “who has everything but the truth.” Still others noted skeptically: “His hand gathers roses where others find only thorns.”

François Boucher painted several ceremonial portraits of the famous favorite of Louis XV Marquise Pompadour, who patronized the artist.

The most famous image of the marquise by F. Boucher is the painting "Madame de Pompadour" 1756, in which the heroine is presented surrounded by objects reminiscent of her artistic tastes and hobbies. At the same time, the book in her hands is a clear hint of enlightenment and commitment to intellectual pursuits (“After us, even a flood!” Remember? She’s also an intellectual and a supporter of enlightenment!!!)

The Marquise of Pompadour generously thanked the artist, first appointing him director of the tapestry manufactory (well, yes, otherwise where would the famous “Shepherdess” tapestry come from?), and then president of the Academy of Arts, giving him the title of “the first painter of the king.”

In addition to fulfilling orders from the French royal court, Francois Boucher constantly turned to depicting various kinds of frivolous scenes, the main characters of which were cutesy, shy shepherdesses or plump naked beauties in the form of mythological Venuses and Dianas.
His paintings are replete with ambiguous hints, piquant details (the raised hem of the shepherdess’s skirt, the coquettishly raised leg of the bathing Diana, a finger pressed to her lips, an eloquent, inviting look, sheep huddling at the feet of lovers, kissing doves, etc.).

Well, Francois Boucher knew the fashion and tastes of his era very well!

In the history of world painting, Francois Boucher still remains a magnificent master of color and exquisite drawing, whose paintings call to the world of happiness, love and beautiful dreams.

But for everyone who carefully read this post, it should be clear where exactly these dreams ultimately lead.

Thank you for attention.
Sergey Vorobiev.

“Gallant genre” - Rococo painting

Masters of the “gallant genre” ROCOCO (“whimsical”, “capricious”; French rococo from rocaille - fragments of stones, shells), a style movement that dominated European art during the first three quarters of the 18th century. It represented not so much an independent artistic phenomenon as a phase, a certain stage of the pan-European Baroque style. The term “rococo” arose in France at the end of the 18th century, during the heyday of classicism, as a contemptuous nickname for all the mannered and pretentious art of the 18th century: a curved, capricious line, reminiscent of the outline of a shell, is its main feature. Rococo art is a world of fiction and intimate experiences, decorative theatricality, sophistication, sophisticated sophistication; there is no place for heroism and pathos in it - they are replaced by a game of love, fantasy, and charming trinkets. The main themes of Rococo painting are the exquisite life of the court aristocracy, idyllic pictures of “shepherd” life against the backdrop of pristine nature, the world of complex love affairs and ingenious allegories. Human life is instantaneous and fleeting, and therefore we must seize the “happy moment”, hurry to live and feel. “The spirit of charming and airy little things” becomes the leitmotif of the work of many artists of the “royal style.”

Antoine Watteau Antoine Watteau was called by his contemporaries “the poet of carefree leisure” and “gallant festivities”, “the singer of grace and beauty”. In his works, he depicted picnics in evergreen parks, musical and theatrical concerts in the lap of nature, passionate confessions and quarrels of lovers, idyllic dates, balls and masquerades. At the same time, his paintings contain a painful sadness. A feeling of the transience of beauty and the ephemerality of what is happening.

Antoine Watteau. Pilgrimage to the island of Kythera. 1717-1718 Louvre. Paris. One of the artist’s famous paintings is “Pilgrimage to the Island of Cythera.” Lovely ladies and gallant gentlemen gathered on the flower-strewn shore of the sea bay. They sailed to the island of Cythera - the island of the goddess of love and beauty Venus, where, according to legend, she emerged from the foam of the sea. Warm, soft paints, muted colors, light brush strokes - all this creates a special atmosphere of charm and love.

One of the true masterpieces is Watteau’s painting “Gilles” (“Pierrot”), created as a sign for the performance of traveling comedians. Gilles is the main and favorite character of the French comedy of masks. Consonant with Piero - the hero of the Italian commedia dell'arte. The clumsy, naive creature seems to be specially created for the constant ridicule and tricks of the clever and cunning Harlequin. Artistically, the picture is brilliantly painted. The extreme simplicity of the motif and composition is combined here with precise design and carefully thought out colors. Antoine Watteau. Gilles. 1721. Louvre. Paris. (Hero of the fair theater Gilles in the costume of Pierrot).

Antoine Watteau. Italian comedians.

Antoine Watteau. Actors of the French theater.

Antoine Watteau. Gamma of love.

Antoine Watteau. Capricious. Around 1718. Hermitage. Petersburg.

Antoine Watteau. Mezzeten. 1717-1719 Metropolitan Museum of Art. NY.

Antoine Watteau. Savoyard with a marmot.

Francois Boucher Francois Boucher (1703-1770) considered himself a faithful student of Watteau. Some called him “the artist of the graces”, “Anacreon of painting”, “royal painter”. Others saw him as a “hypocrite” artist “who has everything but the truth.” Still others noted skeptically: “His hand gathers roses where others find only thorns.”

The artist painted a number of portraits of the favorite of King Louis XV, the Marquise de Pompadour. It is known that she patronized Boucher and more than once ordered him paintings of religious subjects for country residences and Parisian mansions. In the painting “Madame de Pompadour,” the heroine is presented surrounded by scattered flowers and luxurious objects, reminiscent of her artistic tastes and hobbies. She reclines regally against the backdrop of lush, solemn draperies. The book in her hand is a clear hint of enlightenment and commitment to intellectual pursuits. The Marquise generously thanked the artist. She appointed him director of the Gobelin Manufactory, and then awarded him the title of “the first painter of the king.” Francois Boucher. Madame de Pompadour. 1756 Alte Pinotek, Munich.

Francois Boucher more than once turned to the depiction of frivolous scenes, the main characters of which were cutesy, shy shepherdesses or plump naked beauties in the form of mythological Venuses and Dianas. His paintings are replete with ambiguous hints, piquant details (the raised hem of the satin skirt of the shepherdess, the coquettishly raised leg of the bathing Diana, a finger pressed to her lips, an eloquent, inviting look, symbolically kissing doves, etc.) The artist knew the fashion and tastes of his era perfectly well! Francois Boucher. Diana's bathing. . 1742 Louvre. Paris.

In the history of painting, Francois Boucher remains a magnificent master of color and exquisite design. Witty compositions, unusual angles of the characters, bizarre silhouettes of almost theatrical scenery, rich color accents, bright reflections of transparent paints applied in small, light strokes, smooth flowing rhythms - all this makes F. Boucher an unsurpassed master of painting. His paintings turn into decorative panels, decorate the lush interiors of halls and living rooms, they call to the world of happiness, love and beautiful dreams. Francois Boucher. Interrupted sleep.

Francois Boucher. Pan and Syringa.

FRAGONARD Jean Honore French painter and engraver, the greatest master of the era of Louis XVI. became famous for his masterfully executed gallant and everyday scenes, in which the elegance of Rococo is combined with fidelity to nature, the subtlety of light-air effects, and majestic ancient ruins. Along with works created on the basis of real observations, he also creates pastorals - improvising, he reproduces the scene with such vividness that it seems painted from life. FRAGONARD Jean Honore

Fragonard. Crowned Lover.

Fragonard. Sneak kiss

Fragonard. Psyche shows the sisters the gifts of Cupid.

Honore Fragonard. "Swing" 1766.

Fragonard. Music lesson

ENGR Jean Auguste Dominique (1780-1867), French painter and draftsman. A brilliant master of composition, strict and subtle drawing, truthful, poignant portraits (“L. F. Bertin”, 1832). In his paintings he acted as the main representative of academic classicism (“The Apotheosis of Homer”, 1827). In 1806, Ingres finally went to Italy, where he stayed for many years (1806-20 - Rome, 1820-24 - Florence), enthusiastically studying Italian art of the Renaissance, especially Raphael. Creates a number of masterpieces: portraits “Granet” (1807, Aix-en-Provence); "Madame Devose" (1807, Condé Museum, Chantilly); "Marcotte d'Argenteuil" (1810, National Gallery, Washington); "Cardier" (1811, Louvre, Paris); "Madame Zeno" (1816, Museum in Nantes); "Gurieva" (1821, Hermitage, St. Petersburg) Louis David, Portrait of the Artist Ingres, Circa 1800, Pushkin Museum, Moscow

Engr. Great odalisque. 1814 Oil, canvas. Louvre, Paris.

Engr. Source

Engr. Portrait of Count Guryev. 1821 Oil, canvas. Hermitage, St. Petersburg

Rococo decorative arts Meissen figurines.

Rococo style furniture

Furniture in the Rococo style. Winter Palace. Saint Petersburg.

Questions and tasks: A. Watteau is a painter of joy and sadness. “Painter of Graces” - F. Boucher. Decorative and applied arts of Rococo. Write an essay on the topic “What could the heroes of Antoine Watteau’s paintings dream and talk about.

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Slide captions:

ROCOCO PAINTING “MASTERS OF THE GALLANT GENRE” Antoine Watteau Boucher Francois Teacher of history, social studies, MHC MBOU “Secondary School No. 48”, Vladivostok Svetlana Nikolaevna Shabalina

Rococo style Jean Antoine Watteau (1684 – 1721) Boucher Francois (1703–1770) Plan

The term "rococo", derived from the French "rocaille" (literally: diamond and shell decoration), appeared at the end of the 18th century. Rococo is characterized by a departure from life into the world of fantasy, theatrical play, mythological plots, and erotic situations. Rococo

The exquisite life of the aristocracy “Gallant festivities” Pictures of “shepherd life against the backdrop of pristine nature Human life is momentarily fleeting, and therefore we must seize the “happy moment” The main themes of Rococo painting

Jean Antoine Watteau (1684 – 1721) Watteau’s paintings are extremely characterized by theatrical and masquerade elements. It was precisely the gallant scenes that brought him fame. “Gallant can be called an elegant idle campaign of people spending leisure time together, an important element of which are flirting and love affairs. Of course, the inclusion of commedia dell’arte characters in the composition of such scenes should be considered a brilliant invention. Pierrot, Columbine, Harlequin helped the artist erase the line between theater and the outside world, between fiction and reality, intention and action.

Gamma of Love (c. 1715), National Gallery, London

Joys of life

Gallant Harlequin and Columbine 1716-1718. Wallace Collection, London.

French Comedy (1716)

Venetian Festival (c. 1718)

Francois Boucher (1703–1770) Francois Boucher, who, in addition to painting, worked in all types of decorative and applied arts: he created cardboards for tapestries, drawings for Sèvres porcelain, painted fans, performed miniatures and decorative paintings, and later painted lampshades, panels, paintings with mythological, pastoral, genre scenes, elegant and flirtatious portraits, idyllic landscapes, designed in soft silvery-green tones

Landscape in the vicinity of Beauvais 1740-1745. Hermitage, St. Petersburg.

Portrait of the Marquise de Pompadour 1756. Alte Pinakothek, Munich

Mill in Charaton 1750s. Art Museum, Orleans.

An artist in his studio, 1730s. Louvre Museum, Paris.

Milliner 1746. National Museum, Stockholm.

The Rape of Europe 1732-1734. Wallace Collection, London.

Portrait of the artist's wife Marie-Jeanne Buzot 1743. Frick Collection, New York.

Breakfast 1739. Louvre Museum, Paris.

GALLANT GENRE

GALLANT GENRE gallant celebrations (French fetes galantes) are a type of everyday genre that has ancient roots. G.'s predecessors. are originated in Europe in the 14th - 16th centuries. images of the “Garden of Love”, scenes of miniatures, tapestries, engravings, wall and easel paintings: ladies and gentlemen walking, playing music, exchanging pleasantries in a flowering garden: miniature in the “Luxury Book of Hours of the Duke of Berry” by the Limburg brothers (c. 1411 - 1416, Museum Conde, Chantilly), "The Month of April", fresco by Francesco del Cossa (1469 - 1470, Schifanoia Castle in Ferrara), painting by Giorgione "Rural Concert" (c. 1506 - 1510, Louvre). Peter Paul Rubens's painting "The Garden of Love" (c. 1632 - 1635, Prado) anticipates the main features of architecture. But G.’s actual style. formed in the beginning. 18th century in the works of Antoine Watteau and his school in France, from where it spread to many European countries ("Pilgrimage to Cythera", 1717, Louvre, and love scenes in Watteau's park landscapes). Stylized, sometimes grotesque reminiscences of G. Zh. characteristic of painting and graphics of the “World of Art” (K. A. Somov, D. I. Mitrokhin).