Fountain Designs
Medium
Bound print
Classification
Bound print
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-216-108
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Gilles-Marie Oppenord (1672–1742), a prominent French architect and ornamental designer during the Régence period, created *Fountain Designs* as part of his innovative contributions to rococo aesthetics. Though Oppenord passed away in 1742, this bound print collection was published between 1749 and 1761, likely compiling his intricate sketches posthumously. Working in the opulent courts of Louis XIV and XV, Oppenord blended classical symmetry with playful, asymmetrical flourishes, influencing garden architecture and decorative arts across Europe. As a bound print—a volume of engraved plates r...