Design for the decoration of an oval ceiling with putti and garlands; with a detail of a lunette
Medium
graphite, watercolor and gold paint on tracing paper; mounted on wove paper
Dimensions
Overall: 19 5/8 x 13 5/16 in. (49.8 x 33.8 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Dodge Fund, 1967
Accession Number
67.827.255
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate preparatory drawing, created by French artists Jules-EdmondCharles Lachaise andène-Pierre Gourdet around the mid- to late 19th century envisions an ornate oval ceiling decoration alive with playful putti—those cherubic child figures beloved in Western art—and flowing garlands. A detailed lunette study adds focus to an arched panel, likely incorporating a coat of arms, suggesting a commission for a grand interior, such as a salon or palace hall. Such designs reflect the era's revival of Baroque and Rococo opulence amid France's Second Empire and Belle Époque grandeur. Rendered in...
About the Artist
Jules-Edmond-Charles Lachaise|Eugène-Pierre Gourdet · 1897–1897
Jules-Edmond-Charles Lachaise, born Jules Lachaise on September 2, 1836, in Paris, emerged as a prominent French painter and draughtsman specializing in lavish interior decorations during the Second Empire and beyond. Little is known about his early life and formal training, though he married Berthe Gourdet in 1866, forging a close professional partnership with her brother, the decorator Eugène-Pi...