Allegory of Vigilance
The female figure is not a portrait sitter but a model in allegorical guise, and the oil lamp and books are traditional symbols of vigilance. Fragonard paints in wide liquid strokes, stopping for few details, in a style typical of his work in the 1770s.
Artwork Details
- Title: Allegory of Vigilance
- Artist: Jean Honoré Fragonard (French, Grasse 1732–1806 Paris)
- Date: ca. 1772
- Medium: Oil on canvas
- Dimensions: Oval, 27 1/8 x 21 5/8 in. (68.9 x 54.9 cm)
- Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: Gift of René Fribourg, 1953
- Object Number: 53.161
- Curatorial Department: European Paintings
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