Summer

mythological

Four large-scale decorative canvases emblematizing the 'Four Seasons' were commissioned around 1720 by Jean-François Leriget de la Faye (1764-1731), one of the most enlightened and distinguished patrons of the arts in Régence Paris. He was a diplomat, military man and connoisseur of art, music, ballet and theater, an amateur poet with enough merit to claim a seat in the Académie Française. By 1721, Watteau was dead and Lancret would have emerged as his undisputed successor as master of the fte galante.

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About the Artist

Nicolas Lancret

1690 – 1743

French painter, he was, with Pater, the principal imitator of Watteau. After failing as a history painter he was influenced by Gillot 's theatrical scenes as Watteau had been, and he spent the rest of his life painting fêtes galantes. He is well represented in the Wallace Collection, London.

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