Description
In this early chalk drawing, François Boucher combined plants, dolphins, rocks, shells, and tritons (mythological creatures that are part man and part fish) into a design that was meant to suggest a fountain in a rocky garden grotto. This sheet represents l'art rocaille, or "rock and shell art," a style of ornament that developed in France during the 1730s and featured decorative compositions with abundant detail. The image was one of seven that the printmaker Gabriel Huquier translated as etchings around the time Boucher completed them. These reproductions helped to bring Boucher's work to a broader audience, including other artists who emulated his style.
Provenance
Possibly Gabriel Huquier [1695-1772], Paris (?-1771?); (his sale, Paris, Tableaux, Gouaches, Desseins...du Cabinet de M. ***, 1771, no. 89) (1771); (possibly sale, Paris, Tableaux...composant le cabinet de M. Rochaz, February 11, 1856, no. 3) (1856); Probably M. Marmontel (?-1883); (Hotel Drouot, Paris, Aquarelles et Dessins...composant la collection de M. Marmontel, January 25-26, 1883, no. 44) (1883); Possibly "M[onsieur] S." (after 1883-1896); (Hotel Drouot, Paris, Dessins Anciens et Modernes...Appartenant à M. S..., June 1, 1896, no. 2) (1896); Franz Lederer [1899-2000], Palm Springs, CA (?-?); (Erich Lederer, Geneva, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH) (?-1952); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1952-)
Accession Number
1952.529
Medium
Black chalk with stumping, and red chalk, heightened with white chalk on beige laid paper
Dimensions
Sheet: 37.7 x 22.2 cm (14 13/16 x 8 3/4 in.); Secondary Support: 39.6 x 24.2 cm (15 9/16 x 9 1/2 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Credit Line
John L. Severance Fund