Two Designs for Ornament
ca. 1770
Medium
Pen and black ink, brush and gray wash, over graphite underdrawing
Dimensions
3 3/8 x 8 1/16 in. (8.6 x 20.4 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of William Rieder, 2009
Accession Number
2009.465.2
Tags
Art Historical Context
Richard de Lalonde's *Two Designs for Ornament*ca. 1770) captures the exquisite elegance of late 18th-century decorative arts. A prolific Parisian ornamentalist active during the Louis XV and early Louis XVI periods, Lalonde specialized in intricate motifs for furniture, silverwork, and interiors. These delicate drawings showcase paired ornamental schemes, likely intended as models for craftsmen, reflecting the era's shift from opulent Rococo curves toward more refined Neoclassical symmetry. Executed on a modest sheet measuring just 3⅜ × 8¹/₁₆ inches, the work employs a meticulous mixed-media...