1. The Art of Love
An Exhibition of Jean-Honore Fragonard’s
Works
Marissa Chin
Spring 2014
Art 202

2. The Introduction to Rococo
Romance
The modern age of the eighteenth century was the birth
of an artistic transformation throughout Europe. The
promises of prosperity and wealth spawned hopes and
dreams from the emerging middle class gave way to a
style known as Rococo art. After its beginnings in
architecture in the salon culture of Paris, it would begin to
show in other mediums, such as paintings

3. The Introduction to Rococo
Romance (cont.)
The Rococo art style showed elegance and beauty,
characterizing itself with scenes of classical love stories
and fantastical dreams of romance. Such a style was
fit for the French artist, Jean-Honore Fragonard, who
was known for his masterpieces that portrayed romance
in both the purest and the most sensual of forms.

4. Blind Man’s Bluff (1751)
Romance has many dimensions, ranging from playful and innocent elements to
the more intimate and private. Even with the multiple faces of an abstract principal such as
love, Fragonard was able to incorporate more than just one view of love in his paintings.
One of the best examples of Fragonard’s ability to show the sides of love is his painting
“Blind-Man’s Bluff”, painted in 1752. The Toledo Museum of Art in which the painting
now resides states “Playfully erotic and sensuously painted, Jean-Honoré Fragonard's
scene of youthful flirtation fulfils the eighteenth-century aristocratic French taste for
romantic pastoral themes.” (“Blind Man’s Bluff”, Toledo Museum). In the painting, a man
and woman sit in an elegant garden in the light of day as they play the children’s game,
Blind Man’s Bluff. The bright, elegant colors of the oil on canvas make for a beautiful, but
still lighthearted and playful mood. The man is shown teasing his blindfolded lover by
stroking her delicate cheek with a small piece of straw. Besides the woman, two small
children play the role of the classical cupid. One brushes her hand with a stick in an
attempt to distract the woman from what she desires. However, what’s most notable about
the scenery is the woman’s expression. As her eyes just barely peek out from underneath
the white cloth, a smirk comes across her lips, showing the viewers that she is well aware of
the situation at hand.

5. Blind Man’s Bluff (cont.)
 The pastel colors of the painting are fit for such romantic
imagery. Plenty of symbolism and hidden meanings can be
found in the painting. The game Blind Man’s Bluff was
commonly shown in art and literature as a symbol of the folly of
marriage, where one took their chances in choosing their beloved;
though there is only one couple in this picture. The garden in
which the couple sit in are of great significance as well, for
virginity was often represented by an enclosed garden. Sexuality
was a theme in this picture, due to the fact that a broken gate that
has fallen off its posts. There is no doubt that the true meaning of
the painting “Blind Man’s Bluff” was that of love and sexuality.
However, the painting isn’t just purely erotic in nature. Instead, it
is better described as an act of courtship and the budding love
between a man and a woman.

6. The Swing (1767)
 One of the paintings that defines Fragonard as an master of Rococo and one of the most—if not, the
most well-known Rococo painting is known as “The Swing”. Painted in 1767, “The Swing” provides a
different perspective of romance than that provided by Fragonard’s previous painting “Blind Man’s
Bluff”. Rather than the more innocent blooming love depicted in “Blind Man’s Bluff”, “The Swing” has
more obvious erotic undertones. The encyclopedic art database Artble states: “Commissioned by the
notorious French libertine Baron de St. Julien as a portrait of his mistress, The Swing was to be painted
to the following specificity: "I should like you to paint Madame seated on a swing being pushed by a
Bishop" (“The Swing”, Artble). In the painting, a young maiden, identified as the Baron's Mistress, sits
atop a swing set in a garden rich of greenery. Her legs kick outward to propel her into the skies above as
the mistress’s husband assists her flight by pushing her back whenever she comes back down to earth.
The perverse Baron conceals his presence by sitting in the bushes below her swing. “[The Baron] gave
very specific instructions to Fragonard, stating "Place me in a position where I can observe the legs of
that charming girl" (“The Swing”, Artble). As the woman is lifted into the skies and her legs kick
upward, the Baron is provided with a perfect view of the underside of her lavish pink dress. If the viewer of
the painting were to take a closer look, they would be able to see not only the brush strokes that define her
skirt, but the garter that hugs her thigh.

7. The Swing (cont.)
 To put more emphasis on the obscenity of the story,
two cherubs place themselves below the swing. The
gestures of the cherubs show feelings of disgust as
they watch the Baron observe his mistress’s intimate
areas in great pleasure. One cherub scowls as he
looks away while the other simply watches in shock.
Furthermore, the stone statue of Cupid has his
finger to his lips to intensify the private actions of
the affair.

8. The Stolen Kiss (1788)
 Another painting which depicts the more secretive side of love is Fragonard’s
painting “The Stolen Kiss”. This painting was created in 1788 with oil on
canvas, just as many of his other paintings had been painted with. “The Stolen
Kiss explores the theme of secretive romance and passionate moments grabbed in
a fleeting moment” (The Stolen Kiss, Artble). A man sneaks a quick, but
passionate kiss to his lover in secrecy. The posing of the young maiden reiterates
the private affair. The woman looks away from the one who kisses her as she
leans in towards him, making sure to keep her gaze on any potential viewers.
Her grace as well as the detail in every fold of her dress emphasize the exotic
scene. The form the maiden taken on is coquettish and the expression that is
fixed on her face is sly, almost as if she acknowledges the fact that her sins
wouldn’t last. Such expressions and such actions go beyond eroticism.

9. The Progress of Love (1771-1772)
 In 1771, Fragonard completed a series of paintings known as “The Progress of
Love”, commissioned by the last mistress of Louis XV, Comtesse du Barry. The
Frick Collection states “For a pleasure pavilion she commissioned from the
architect Ledoux in 1771, the countess ordered from Fragonard four canvases
depicting ‘the four ages of love.’” (“The Progress of Love”, Frick Collection). The
paintings in these series are large scale paintings that would decorate the fireplace
and the adjacent south wall. The illustrations depict a love story, starting from
the south wall. These paintings show scenes reminiscent of that of a classical love
story such as a proposal of roses from a man to a woman, the man scaling a wall
of a garden to meet with his lover, a marriage in which the woman crowns her lover
with roses and finally, a calm scene of the lovers reading love letters. The scenes
depict more innocent acts of love and their beauty is reflected in Fragonard’s
mastery of Rococo.
 Sadly, for unknown reasons, the mistress was unsatisfied and returned the
paintings to the artists. Despite rejection, Fragonard would hold onto his creations
and complete seven more parts to the series before finally installing them into his
cousin’s villa in southern France.

10. Conclusion
 Fragonard was one of the masters of Rococo art during
his time. Even if Fragonard was not the first Rococo
artist and another artist known as Jean-Antoine
Watteu was his predecessor, there is no doubt that
Fragonard’s art is nothing short of beautiful With the
soft pastel colors and an eye for important artistic
concepts such as detail as well as light and shadow,
Fragonard was the perfect artist to portray such a
beautiful aspect known as love.

11. Fragonard’s Works of Art

12.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 Blind Man’s Bluff
 Completed in 1751
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the Toledo
Museum of Art of Toledo,
Ohio

13.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 The Swing
 Completed in 1767
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the Wallace
Collection of London,
United Kingdom

14.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 The Progress of Love: The
Pursuit
 Completed in 1771-1772
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the Frick
Collection of New York

15.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 The Progress of Love: The
Meeting
 Completed in 177-1772
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the Frick
Collection of New York

16.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 The Progress of Love: The
Lover Crowned
 Completed in 1771-1772
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the Frick
Collection of New York

17.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 The Progress of Love: Love
Letters
 Completed in 1771-1772
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the Frick
Location of New York

18.  Jean-Honore Fragonard
(French, 1732-1806)
 The Stolen Kiss
 Completed in 1788
 Oil on Canvas
 Located in the State
Hermitage Museum of
Saint Petersburg,
Russian Federation

19. Annotated List of Works Cited
 "Fragonard's The Swing." Smarthistory. Khan
Academy, n.d. Web. 02 May 2014.
 Smarthistory at Khan Academy is a credible source
because it is an open educational resource for art
history. Smarthistory was created by Dr. Beth Harris
and Dr. Steven Zucker Many art historians contribute
to Smarthistory and the knowledge is open to anyone
without payment. Smarthistory has also earned many
awards, such as the 2012 Award for Open Courseware
Excellent and Time Magazine’s 50 Best Websites of
2011 and more.

20.  "Blind-Man’s Buff." Toledo Museum of Art. Toledo
Museum of Art, n.d. Web. 30 April 2014.
 Toledo Museum of Art has the painting “Blind-Man’s
Buff” on display. Not only that, Toledo Museum of Art
is an established art museum set up in Toledo, Ohio.
The scholars behind it have purchased the physical copies
of artwork and have committed themselves to doing
extensive research on their work, as shown by the
bibliography on the website.

21.  "The Swing." Artble. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 May 2014.
 Artble is a reliable source because it describes itself as an
encyclopedic webpage in which one can easily access
information about artists from different time periods.
Not only that, Artble always puts bibliographies in,
showing that they have done their research to make sure
that the information they find is accurate.

22.  “The Stolen Kiss." Artble. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 May 2014.
 Artble is a reliable source because it describes itself as an
encyclopedic webpage in which one can easily access
information about artists from different time periods.
Not only that, Artble always puts bibliographies in,
showing that they have done their research to make sure
that the information they find is accurate.

23.  The Frick Collection. “Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732-
1806), "The Progress of Love." Online video clip.
YouTube. YouTube, 31 March. 2009. Web. 6 May. 2014.
 This video is published by The Frick Collection in New
York, which has The Progress of Love series on display.
Therefore, the scholars behind it have purchased the
physical copies of artwork and have committed
themselves to doing extensive research on their work.