Chinoiserie with a female figure holding burning perfumes, from Suite de Figures Chinoises. . .Tiré du Cabinet de Mr. d'Azaincourt
Original title: Chinoiserie with a female figure holding burning perfumes, from Suite de Figures Chinoises. . .Tiré du Cabinet de Mr. d'Azaincourt (Series of Chinoiserie Figures. . .From the Chambers of Mr. d'Azaincourt)
kurzbeschreibung
Jean Pierre Louis Laurent Hoüel made this etching between 1755 and 1776. A woman in Chinese dress carries a frame with two vessels hanging from it. She stands in the foreground, with a pavilion and a wall behind her and plants growing between them. The print belongs to the Suite de Figures Chinoises, whose models came from the collection of Mr. d'Azaincourt.
Description
On a platform at the middle of the image stands the female figure, plants all around her. Her hands hold a long wooden device with two vessels suspended from it. At the back left a pavilion appears, and at the right a wall with further buildings and trees. Light clouds cross the sky. The arrangement is balanced, almost mirror-like. Everything is kept in greys, the light falls evenly and strong shadows are absent.
Context
The series was published between 1755 and 1776, and its motifs go back to pieces in Mr. d'Azaincourt's collection. The sheet thus stands for the European fashion for chinoiserie in the eighteenth century, which took up forms from East Asia and raised them into an ideal image. Hoüel, a French artist, was known above all for landscapes and ornamental prints.
Impact
A quiet, transfigured scene of Far Eastern flavour emanates from the print. Cleanly drawn lines and the balanced arrangement give it a harmonious, decorative character, typical of the chinoiseries of those years.
Technique
Etching and engraving work together here, producing precise linework and finely graded textures. The grey values come from line hatching of varying density, with no touches of colour.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)