The Foursome

Antoine Watteau, one of the most famous Rococo painters, pioneered a unique genre within French art known as the fête galante, which embodies the theme of courtship festivities. The artwork we present today serves as an early manifestation of the genre, depicting a scene set within a garden where elegantly dressed men and women engage in subtle flirtations. The atmosphere is imbued with a sense of quiet contemplation, blurring the lines between theatrical and aristocratic social realms.

The painting features identifiable figures from the commedia dell’arte (Italian theater) - notably Pierrot, the clown dressed in white to the right, and Mezzetin, adorned in stripes to the left - though it refrains from depicting a specific theatrical piece. As often happens in the art history world, the work's title, The Foursome, was not named by Watteau but by someone else; in this case by his friend, collector, and publisher Jean de Jullienne, who produced an engraving of the scene after the death of the artist.

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