Design for a Rocaille Cartouche with the Figure of Putto holding up a Cup, Plate 4 from an untitled series with architectural cartouches and allegorical figures
Printed ca. 1750–56
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Overall: 8 7/16 × 13 3/4 in. (21.5 × 35 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ornament & Architecture|Albums
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Daniel Ergmann Gift, 2014
Accession Number
2014.97.18
Tags
Art Historical Context
This enchanting etching, *Design for a Rocailleouche with the Figure ofto holding up a Cup is Plate 4 from an unt series of architectural cartouches and allegorical, created around 1750–56 by a collaborative trio of Augsburg printmakers: Jacob Thelot, Martin Engel, and Jeremias Wachuth. Measuring 8 7/16 × 13 3/4 inches, it exemplifies the playful Rococo style—known as *rocaille* for its shell-like, asymmetrical motifs—that swept Europe in the mid-18th century, favoring ornate whimsy over Baroque grandeur. At its heart, a cherubic *putto* (a chubby child figure symbolizing innocence and love) ...
About the Artist
Jacob Gottlieb Thelot|Martin Engelbrecht|Jeremias Wachsmuth (Central European|German|German) · |1700 |1684 – |1790 |1756
German, Augsburg 1708–1760 Augsburg|German, active Augsburg, ca. 1750|German, Augsburg 1684–1756 Augsburg