A Park Landscape

ca. 1759-60

Not on view

Returned to lender

This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.

This representation of an overgrown garden, thick with vegetation, demonstrates Fragonard’s early mastery of the landscape genre. The artist’s meandering red chalk lines depict the twisted trunks, dangling branches, and bushy shrubs flanking a grand set of stone stairs with balustrades. In addition to red chalk, Fragonard introduced a second tone: a brownish variety of chalk, called sanguine brulée because of its burnt hue, which became popular in the mid-1700s. He dexterously intertwined the two colors in the foliage and grass, while using the darker shade alone in the trunk of the forked tree and in some of its errant branches.

Artwork Details

Overview

Exhibition History

Title: A Park Landscape
Artist: Jean Honoré Fragonard (French, Grasse 1732–1806 Paris)
Date: ca. 1759-60
Medium: Two colors of red chalk
Dimensions: 12 3/16 × 15 1/4 in. (30.9 × 38.7 cm)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Private collection
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints