A Love Letter
Medium
Etching and Engraving; second state of two
Dimensions
sheet: 15 3/16 x 10 7/8 in. (38.5 x 27.6 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1947
Accession Number
47.100.335
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
"A Love Letter" captures a tender moment of private emotion through the refined medium of etching and engraving. Created by Simon Charles Miger after a design by François Boucher, this print exists in its second state, reflecting the careful revisions typical of reproductive printmaking in eighteenth-century France. The composition centers on a woman absorbed in correspondence, aligning with the work’s tags of reading and romantic exchange, and invites viewers to imagine the intimate story unfolding on the page. François Boucher, a leading figure of the Rococo movement, was celebrated for his graceful depictions of love, leisure, and feminine beauty. Miger’s engraving translates these qualities into fine lines and delicate tonal contrasts, allowing the image to reach a wider audience beyond the original painting or drawing. Such prints played an important cultural role, circulating fashionable themes of gallantry and sentiment across Europe. Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1947 through the Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, this work exemplifies how reproductive prints preserved and popularized the lighthearted elegance of Rococo art for generations of viewers.
About the Artist
Simon Charles Miger|François Boucher (French|French) · 1725 |1736 –1777 |1820
French, Paris 1725–1777 Paris|French, Nemours 1736–1820 Paris