Les vautours et les pigeons (Vultures and Pigeons)
published 1756
Medium
hand-colored etching
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. George W. Ware
Accession Number
1975.81.7
Art Historical Context
This hand-colored etching, published in 1756, captures a lively scene of vultures and pigeons, likely drawn from a fable by Jean de La Fontaine. Created by Quentin-Pierre Chedel after a design by the celebrated French artist Jean-Baptiste Oudry, the print reflects the 18th-century fascination with moral tales and the natural world. Oudry, a leading figure in the Rococo period, was renowned for his vivid animal paintings and illustrations that brought fables to life with dynamic energy and naturalistic detail. The medium of hand-colored etching allowed for wide distribution of Oudry’s composit...