Picnic on the green according to the Watteau’s fashion
Length cm 29,5
Spread cm 50, 5
Sticks 19 plus 2
France 1714-1720
It’s a good painting in kid skin, the scene represents a moment of relax in a park, amongst dances and courtings. The figures of the Comedie Françaises or italienne so fashionable between the two centuries, are here represented: on the left we recognize a Pierrot who dances with a very French Colombina.
I can’t award this fan to Watteau, but the artist surely knew it! The stylistic links to the paintings of the famous painter are evident:
“the Gersaint’s insignia” describes the feminine clothes according to the robe volante, very fashionable in the Orleans’ regency years.
“ the haunting meeting” is a range of male clothes.
“the Champs –Elyseèè” show other clothes, men’s headgears, the culottes stopped at the knee by a ribbon and the men shoes still following the Louis XIV fashion with ribbon and heel; all these characteristics make me put the fan in the Orleans regency years.
If the modest attitude of the lute’s player on the right, reminds the Nicolas Lancret’s style (1690-1743), the feminine dresses could seem lightly subsequent to those ones present in the fan. The ivory sticks are lightly fretted with a vegetable decoration, and around the rivet there is a pearl inclusion, as we can see in the fans nr 029-073.094 (*), it’s a particular which indicates the period between 1700 and 1920.
"Details make perfection, and perfection is not a detail."
Leonardo Da Vinci
