Rococo Art
This paper defines and illustrates the Rococo movement. Rococo art was a highly sensual, light hearted movement and the art of this period greatly reflected a common way of thinking during this time.

Art History II
Rococo, meaning literally “embedded pebble” started in France at the beginning of the 18th Century, gaining popularity during the reign of Louis XV. (Rococo 1700 - 1775) Art from the Rococo movement was a reaction to the darker, heavier Baroque movement. The death of Louis the XIV brought about big changes to art and the patronage of art and the Rococo movement was one of these changes. (Kleiner, Fred S., and Helen Gardner)
The start of the Rococo movement can be credited primarily to the death of Louis XIV. Upon the abandonment of Versailles by the French Nobility, they moved into Paris, and wanted to move away from the solemn Baroque style of the Palace of Versailles. So when the French court moved back into Paris, they redecorated their homes using the delicate forms and colors which would later be known as “Rococo” (A Brief History of Rococo Art). The Rococo movement started with interior design but soon made its way into other areas of art as well. (Rococo style | design)
Rococo art, especially in architecture and interior design features natural elements such as shells, floral or leaf patterns ("Rococo Style," ). The art and architecture of this movement used highly organic forms (Style Guide: Rococo).
An important and notable example of Rococo interior design is Germain Boffrand's interior designs for Hôtel de Soubise. (Hôtel de Soubise) Designed by Boffrand in 1737, these beautiful and intricate interiors are some of the best preserved examples of the Rococo style. (Journey Through Paris: Rococo Style at the Hotel de Soubise)
One of the most famous of the rooms designed by Boffrand for Hôtel de Soubise is Salon de la Princesse. This room features ornate mirrors, gilded gold accents, and the soft colors characteristic of the Rococo movement. All of these elements work together to make a beautiful and unified space (Boffrand: Salon de la Princesse).
Rococo art could be said to have a more feminine look to it and this was partly because during this time period women were gaining more influence in society. One of these woman influence was Madame de Pompadour. She was Louis XV's favorite mistress and was responsible for decorating the interiors of the palace of Versailles in the Rococo style (Madame de Pompadour). She was also a big patron of the arts during this time period and commissioned many paintings (Currie, Dawn). Madame de Pompadour became a prominent patron of Francois Boucher, one of the most key Rococo painters (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History).
Along with his commissioned paintings for Madame de Pompadour, Boucher completed many other Rococo paintings. Boucher became known by painting mythological subjects and pastoral landscapes (Francois Boucher | biography). Many of Boucher's paintings were erotic in nature, specifically his Odalisque paintings. Odalisques can be defined as a “a female slave or concubine in a Turkish harem, particularly the concubines in the household of the Ottoman sultan.” (Odalisque) One of Boucher's most notable Odalisque paintings was The Blonde Odalesque. The woman depicted in this painting was said to be one of Louis XV's mistresses.
While Boucher received much praise for these paintings, there was also criticism. This came from the fact that his nudes were not set in a mythological context, but in a realistic context and often the subjects were very young girls (The World According to Art: François Boucher).
We also see a rise in women painters during the rococo movement. Probably the most famous of these is Élizabeth Vigée-Lebrun. She achieved much despite the limitations that came from being a woman during that time period and had a very successful career and did work for Marie Antionette, which helped her gain many more clients. However, due to her close association with Marie Antoinette, she was exiled during the revolution (Ancien Regime Rococo).
Another major player in the Rococo movement is Jeane Antoine Watteau. Watteau is considered by some to be the “father of the Rococo movement”. Watteau painted happy, joyous scenes featuring joyful people (Seventeenth & Eighteenth Century Art: The Rococo Movement). An example of this is The Embarkation for Cythera. The setting for this painting is an island of love, called Cythera. It features couples that are departing from the island, which is said to be a representation of the frivolity of human nature (Embarkation for Cythera). These carefree, light, and sometimes sensual subject matters are very characteristic of Rococo art.
We see these sorts of themes of light-hearted sensuality also in Jean-Honore Fragonard's The Swing. This painting is considered by some to be the “embodiment of Rococ art”. The painting features three people, a young woman on a swing, her lover pushing her in the background, and a young nobleman who appears to be peeping up the young woman's skirts (The Swing - Jean-Honore Fragonard). The colors, the subject matter, and the general style of the painting all perfectly exemplify Rococo painting (Kleiner, Fred S., and Christin J. Mamiya).
Rococo art, though often frivolous in subject matter is beautiful in my opinion. Compared to Baroque art, Rococo art feels like a breath of fresh air with it's beautiful pastels and organic forms. It feels approachable and light-hearted unlike some of the past art movements. I also think that it is an interesting look into how the upper-class in that day lived and thought.
Unlike previous movements, the Rococo movement was not influenced directly by politics or religion and was considered by some to be a “fad” (Rococo Art Movement). In the late 1700's the Rococo movement started to wind down, partially due to criticism by important people like Voltaire, who considered the movement to be frivolous and voiced these opinions. Rococo art was soon replaced by the more serious Neo-Classical.
In Conclusion, Rococo art, despite it's lack of seriousness, was a very influential art movement and it is interesting to look back and see just how much the upper-class affected this movement.

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