FRENCH BAROQUE Louis XIV Versaille Portrait of Louis

FRENCH BAROQUE Louis XIV Versaille

Portrait of Louis XIV, 1701. Adopted the name “le Roi Soleil” (‘The Sun King’) Believed he was center of Universe and was “God’s Will” that he be King Kept complete control of France and his followers Founded the Royal Academy of Painting & Sculpture in 1648 (to promote the French Classical Style) Invented red heel shoes due to being only 5’ 4”

French Baroque Louis XIV, Palace of Versailles, c. 1680.

Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, c 1680.

Louis Le Vau and Jules Hardouin Mansart courtyard

Court etiquette Life at the court was narrowly regulated by court etiquette. Etiquette became the means of social advancement for the court. Louis XIV’s elaborate rules of etiquette included the following: • People who wanted to speak to the king could not knock on his door. Instead, using the left pinkie finger, they had to gently scratch on the door, until they were granted permission to enter. As a result, many courtiers grew that fingernail longer than the others; • A lady never held hands or linked arms with a gentleman. Besides being in bad taste, this practice would have been impossible because a woman’s hooped skirts were so wide. Instead, she was to place her hand on top of the gentleman’s bent arm as they strolled through the gardens and chambers of Versailles. It is also mentioned that the ladies were only allowed to touch fingertips with the men. • When a gentleman sat down, he slid his left foot in front of the other, placed his hands on the sides of the chair and gently lowered himself into the chair. There was a very practical reason for this procedure. If a gentleman sat too fast, his tight trousers might split; • Women and men were not allowed to cross their legs in public; • When a gentleman passed an acquaintance on the street, he was to raise his hat high off his head until the other person passed; • A gentleman was to do no work except writing letters, giving speeches, practicing fencing, or dancing. For pleasure he engaged in hawking, archery, indoor tennis, or hunting. A gentleman would also take part in battle and would sometimes serve as a public officer, paying the soldiers;

French Baroque Nicolas Poussin (pronounced poo-SAHN) Foremost painter of 17 th century French Classicism

Nicolas Poussin, Rape of the Sabines, 1640 s.

Nicolas Poussin, The Death of Germanicus, 1627 -28.

Nicolas Poussin, The Shepherds of Arcadia, 1638.

Nicolas Poussin, Triumph of Neptune and Amphitrite, 1634.

Claude Lorrain, Landscape with Apollo Guarding the Herds of Admetus , 1645.

Claude Lorrain, Port Scene with the Departure of Ulysses from the Land of the Feaci, 1646.

Claude Lorrain, Aeneas's Farewell to Dido in Carthago, 1676.

Claude Lorrain, Landscape with Cephalus and Procris Reunited by Diana, 1645.

Claude Lorrain, Seaport with the Embarkation of the Queen of Sheba, 1648.

Rococo François de Cuvilles, Hall of Mirrors Munich, Germany, early 18 th century Delicate, Organic, Ornate, Detailed, Reflective, Fanciful, Festive

Rococo This is a typical French Rococo Room. The room is comprised of sinuous curves luxuriantly multiplied in mirror reflections. Painting, architecture, and sculpture combine to form a single ensemble. tendrils: A twisting, threadlike structure by which a twining plant, such as a grape or cucumber, grasps an object or a plant for support. Germain Boffrand, Salon de la Princesse Paris, France ca 1737 -1740

Rococo Portrait of Louis XIV, 1701. Antoine Watteau, L’Indefferent Louvre, Paris, France , 1716

Rococo Antoine Watteau, Return from Cythera, 1717 -1719 This painting represents a group of lovers preparing to depart from the island of eternal youth and love, sacred to Aphrodite. Young and luxuriously costumed, they perform, as it were, an elegant, tender, and graceful ballet, moving from the protective shade of a woodland park, peopled with amorous cupids and voluptuous statuary, down a grassy slope to an awaiting golden barge. Fete Galante = ‘elegant outdoor entertainment’

Antoine Watteau, Pilgrimage to Cythera, 1717.

Rococo Boucher was a follower of Watteau and the painter for Madame de Pompadour ( the influencial mistress of Louis XV) His fame was gained through his paintings of graceful allegories, with Archadian shepherds, nymphs, and goddesses cavorting in shady glens engulfed in pink and sky blue light. “Boucher’s paintings are highly caloric with little nutritional value” Francois Boucher, Cupid a Captive, 1754

Rococo Francois Boucher, Marquise de Pompadour 1756.

Rococo Fragonard was a student of Boucher and is considered by many to have surpassed the genius of his master. This is a typical “intrigue” picture. A young gentleman has managed an arrangement whereby an unsuspecting old bishop swings the young man’s pretty sweetheart higher and higher, while her lover (and the work’s patron), in the lower left-hand corner, stretches out to admire her ardently from a strategic position on the ground. The young lady flirtatiously and boldly kicks off her shoe at the little statue on the god of discretion, who holds his finger to his lips. Jean-Honré Fragonard, The Swing, 1766

Jean-Honoré Fragonard, The Bathers, 1766.