Ceiling Design
ca.1660â1713
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-333-40
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Nicolas Pierre Loir (1624–1679), a French artist active during the opulent Baroque era under Louis XIV, created this *Ceiling Design* around 1660–1713. As a skilled engraver and painter,oir contributed to the lavish decorative arts that defined France's grand siècle, where intricate ceiling frescoes and panels adorned palaces like Versailles. This print captures the era's emphasis on illusionistic grandeur, transforming flat surfaces into heavenly expanses filled with mythological figures, architectural flourishes, and dramatic perspective. Printed during a time when engraving revolutionized ...