Soap Bubbles

Jean Siméon Chardin French

Not on view

The idle play of children was a favorite theme of Chardin, a naturalist among painters. Here he drew inspiration from the seventeenth-century Dutch genre tradition for both the format and the subject. While it is not certain that he intended the picture to carry a message, soap bubbles were then understood to allude to the transience of life. Chardin often painted successful compositions in multiples: later versions of Soap Bubbles belong to the Los Angeles County Museum and to the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

#5012. Soap Bubbles, Part 1

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  1. 5012. Soap Bubbles, Part 1
  2. 5008. Soap Bubbles, Part 2
Soap Bubbles, Jean Siméon Chardin (French, Paris 1699–1779 Paris), Oil on canvas

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