The Country Dance

Jean-Antoine Watteauabout 1706-1710

Details

Title: The Country Dance
Creator Lifespan: 1684 - 1721
Creator Nationality: French
Creator Gender: Male
Date Created: about 1706-1710
Type: oil paintings
Rights: Gift of Mrs. Herman C. Krannert
External Link: http://www.imamuseum.org/mercury/load-artwork/10519
Medium: oil on canvas
wall label: In this, his earliest known painting, Watteau draws inspiration from scenes of fairs, peasant weddings and country dances by Flemish painters like Peter Paul Rubens and David Teniers.ÿ Compared to their Flemish forebears, however, Watteau's dancing villagers are more civilized and courtly. Rustic music, which frequently accompanies drunkenness and debauchery in Flemish art, here alludes to the natural harmony of social and familial order. The increasing popularity in 18th-century France of novels and plays with rural themes also reveals a new appreciation for the imagined harmony and simplicity of country life.
measurements: 19 1/2 x 23 5/8 in.
Artist: Jean-Antoine Watteau

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