In class today, we shifted focus from the Baroque to the Rococo period. Following the death of Louis XIV, there was a shift in interest from the grandeur that was used to communicate the power of the absolute monarchy to the private indulgence of the nobility. Now that the nobility was no longer required to pay periodic visits to Versailles, the class rooted itself in Paris where private residences known as h\u00f4tel particuliers were a more intimate and private indulgence. While the building facades would have been small due to the cramped architecture in Paris, the interiors were ornate and decorative. However, whereas in Versailles the decoration was bold and large-scale, the style of h\u00f4tel particular decor was lighter and more delicate. Additionally, decorative elements were not strictly symmetrical which we learned is an important distinguishing factor between Rococo and Baroque styles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next, we looked at several Rococo works that were commissioned by and or painted for the nobility. I noticed these works all shared a theme of indulgence. In Jean-Antoine Watteau’s A Pilgrimage to Cythera<\/em>, a large group of noble people is leaving the island of Cythera after leaving an overly enjoyable day in a fantastical setting. In Watteau’s Gersaint’s Signboard<\/em>, while there is a larger message about the end of Louis XIV’s monarchy, we see members of the nobility shopping for art and luxury objects. In Boucher’s Portrait of Madame de Pompadour<\/em>, the woman, who was the king\u2019s mistress, is shown in her boudoir which was a private luxurious room meant for relaxation and private indulgence. Fragonard\u2019s The Swing<\/em> is not only an example of a painting that would be displayed in a boudoir, but depicts a scene of sexual indulgence for the patron. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The rococo works painted for a bourgeoise audience were much different. While the color palette and style were similar, the subject matter and message of these works were intended to communicate a message about moralistic, wholesome values.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In class today, we shifted focus from the Baroque to the Rococo period. Following the death of Louis XIV, there was a shift in interest from the grandeur that was used to communicate the power of the absolute monarchy to the private indulgence of the nobility. Now that the nobility was no longer required to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11953,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2291"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11953"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2291"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2291\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2292,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2291\/revisions\/2292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/ar112-spring2024\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}