Rococo

What does 1715 signify?

Sun King dies

period of Regency

French court moves back to Paris

What does the court move back to Paris mean?

less of absolutist control over the elites

elites are unleashed

Bourgeoisie on the rise

How does the art reflect the current less restricted politics?

art is more ornate, less symmetrical and more colourful and playful

• reflected relaxed political stance

How is Rococo defined by? What are its 4 themes?

light colour palette, brighter spaces

asymmetry

themes:

1. travel

2. exoticism

3. illusion

4. pleasure

What does travel signify? What was the Grand Tour?

18th century Europe was travel boom

• specifically for art, culture and education

• the grand tour

extended cultural road trip through Europe for the elites

considered a must of a gentleman’s education

young aristocrats would embark on month or year-long trips after finishing formal education

visiting places they read or learned about in school

What was the itinerary of the Grand Tour?

through Europe’s great cultural centres

• Italy, Rome, Florence

study ancient ruins and Renaissance masters

collected souvenirs

Canaletto (Giovanni Antonio Canal), The Grand Canal, Venice, Looking Southeast, with the Campo della Carità to the Right, 1730s.

second type of painting as a result of the Grand Tour

vista or veduta of places the gentlemen visited on tour

• Landscapes as mementos from their trips

fuelled certain art markets that appealed to grand tourists

this type of art work flourished

idealized version of Venice

clear waters, clean sparkly buildings

looks like a brand new city

beautiful and orderly

What type of paintings did Canaletto make?

developed veduta style

crystal clear Venice canals

he started from real life so that canals are recognizable

he would polish and transform them

created fantasy landscapes of Venice

• bring together multiple recognizable places

• this increased market value of artworks

he blended truth and idealization

• suited Rococo style

• charming illusions over realism

What was Rococo exoticism? How did that manifest in art?

Europeans were fascinated by exotic cultures

trade became more systematic between different regions (Asia, Middle East, Europe)

many products became easily available on European market

wealthy Europeans fantasized about the lands they never visited

artistic representations were not accurate representations of those cultures

European designers would cater to the taste of Europeans and create hybrid versions for the elites

What is Chinoiserie?

looking like something from China but not actually from China

told us more about the Europeans than actual Chinese culture

romantic image of China

goods were rare

• owning them was a state of wealth

What type of art fell into the Chinoiserie category?

porcelain, silk, lacquered

luxury items

Chinese rooms

• silk panels, dragon motifs

What did European artists learn to do?

learned to imitate styles

replicated and produced vases, figurines in Rococo style

Johann Gottfried Büring, The Chinese House, Potsdam, 1755-1764

• small pavillion

• for tea parties

• whimsical Chinese house

• designed in a vaguely Asian style

• Rococo daydream

  • figures holding parasols, palm trees

  • hybrid representation

• no actual building in China resembled this

What is Turquerie?

aristocrats would dress in turbans or silks for portraits

fabrics designed with Turkish inspired patterns

authenticity was NOT the goal

What did Europeans want to master?

by 18th century they mastered porcelain

took many years

Why did the elites dress up and recreate exotic fashion?

they wanted to image these places without leaving home

What were the exotic animals of the Rococo period?

exotic animals were the most surprising stars of Rococo art

this was before public zoos

arrival of the strange creatures from abroad was a revelation

Clara the rhino

• toured European cities and sparked a rhino mania

• artists were mesmerized and painted her

taste for all thing exotic

What is singerie?

the representation of monkeys in art

engaged in activities like wearing human clothing, parodies, misbehaving

comical scenes would decorate Paris walls

• satirical

• exotic patterns

adorned medallions and wall décor

How did Rococo architecture expand from Baroque?

took exuberant lavish decor to new extremes

difficult to detect background from features

fusing artwork with architecture

creating intimate novel layouts

impressions of being weightless

Balthasar Neumann, The Basilica of the Fourteen Holy Helpers (Basilika Vierzehnheiligen), Bavaria, Germany, 1743-1772

using unusual shaped plans (compared to Baroque and Renaissance that used traditional shaped layouts)

• shaped with circles, ovals, overlapping elipses

strategy of working with the body and creating vortexes is blown up in Rococo architecture

• funnelling effect

• expansion and contraction

colonnades are curved and draw you in

painted ceiling

• master of illusions

trompe l’oeil

• using stucco

• light plaster that could be shaped

central space remains opens

supports tucked into side

elliptical altar not near apse

• innovated way of placing it in middle of space and ou can walk around

lots of white, pink, cream tones

gilded

Who was Jean-Antoine Watteau and what genre did he paint?

genre called Fête Galante

garden devoted to love and flirtation

Rococo recognized that love was a powerful intoxicant

e.g. The Embarkation for Cythera

What was Rococo architecture like?

an ease to architecture by creating one level buildings/bungalows

easy access to gardens or vineyards

e.g. Sans Souci Palace

invention of modern living

• each room for the pleasure of something

• the home study was seen as one of life’s pleasures

How were many women painted during the Rococo?

typical Rococo painting featured woman naked in risqué poses

• e.g. The Brunette Odalisque that features her spread eagle and nightdress brought up

frilly-nudes and pink-bottomed goddesses

the pursuit of pleasure looks uncomplicated

Who was Madame Pompador and how did she use art to shape her image?

symbol of the Rococo with uplifting hairstyle, the colour pink

used art to maintain her power

she championed Rococo art

beauty and brains

portraits are regal and virtuous

• often holding books, musical instruments, etc.

presented herself as modest, tasteful and indispensable to the king

What were scapulars?

wear it around your neck to ward off evil

if you had one you were sure to go to heaven

What did Tiepolo create?

Scuola Grande dei Carmini

greatest ceiling painter of Rococo

lighting of skies is delightful with cool and calm dawn light, pink and white tones

calm light of the Rococo (vs. thunder and explosions and dark colours of Baroque)

airiness

enchants and seduces you

religious trap with perfect weather conditions, beautiful religious female figures and the scapulars

How did the Rococo depict children?

invented childhood

previously children were seen as mini adults

Rococo showed childhood as something precious and needing to be protected and enjoyed

innocence and freedom

Jean-Honoré Fragonard, The Swing, 1767, oil on canvas.

up and down sexual illusion

lover is on ground looking up her skirt

light, airy, pastel-toned pinks, creams dominate

loose brushstrokes to enhance spontaneity and delight

he is imitating exact pose of Michelangelo’s Adam from Sistine Chapel

secretive ways of adding sexual connotations