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'Gallant conversation' (Conversation galante): couples engage in conversation in a garden setting, at left a musician plays for the group, at right a woman holds a reclining lap dog

Jacques Philippe Le Bas|Nicolas Lancret

1743

'Gallant conversation' (Conversation galante): couples engage in conversation in a garden setting, at left a musician plays for the group, at right a woman holds a reclining lap dog by Jacques Philippe Le Bas|Nicolas Lancret

Medium

Etching and engraving

Dimensions

Sheet: 18 11/16 x 13 7/8 in. (47.5 x 35.2 cm)

Classification

Prints

Department

Drawings and Prints

Museum

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY

Credit

Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011

Accession Number

2012.136.844

Tags

GardensCouplesWomenDogsMusicians

Art Historical Context

In the enchanting print *Gallant Conversation* ( galante), created in 1743, visitors are transported to a lush garden idyll where elegantly dressed couples engage in flirtatious banter. At left, a musician serenades the group with his instrument, while at right, a poised woman cradles a reclining lap dog—a charming symbol of refinement and leisure. This scene captures the essence of French Rococo revelry, a style pioneered by Nicolas Lancret, whose original design was masterfully rendered into etching and engraving by JacquesPhilippe Le Bas. Lancret, a leading exponent of the *fête galante* g...

About the Artist

Jacques Philippe Le Bas|Nicolas Lancret · 1707–1783

Comment on works: Engraver

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