Week 9 Blog Post

When choosing an artist for this response I was immediately drawn to Jean-Honore Fragonard because of his painting The Swing. I enjoyed the playfulness and detail in his scenery and figures in the background.  I was curious to what other masterpieces he had created in his time. When I looked at his other portraits I was drawn to the Young Girl Reading because this is the exact portrait my Grandmother keeps in my bedroom when I come to visit her. I go to sleep with this duplicate of his painting on the opposite wall and have never really looked at it.

            Fragonard (1732-1806) was a French painter of the 18^th century, and was thought of as one of the most important. It was while in Rome that Fragonard picked up the art of broad vigorous brush strokes. I learned that Fragonard’s strengths were primarily in painted landscapes rather than portraits. He was an independent painter who would sell to a closer group of collectors.

In 1770 Fragonard began to paint Young Girl Reading, also known as The Reader. I found this to be a very simple piece with a semi natural pose held in a distinguished but simple setting, where the young girl seems absorbed in what she is reading. This seemed to be a step back from Fragonard’s usual landscape art. This oil painting uses colors in the background that contrasts to the colors used to create a natural light and emphasis of color in the figure. The illumination on the pillow and chair supporting her back alludes to the setting being in front of a window as she reads. It only took Fragonard an hour to paint his subject.

It only took Fragonard an hour to paint his subject. He used long brush strokes while he painted. The white collar around her neck was detailed by using the end of his brush to create such deep texture and detail in the fabric. This technique was not common and not greatly understood for the time. Although this piece isn’t incredibly detailed like so many others I was drawn into the simplicity of it all and overall peacefulness of the painting. The inspiration behind this painting actually came from Fragonard’s wife’s 14-year-old sister Marguerite. Fragonard later fell in love with her and made her his student and assistant.

Something interesting about this painting was that , according to x-ray evidence, Fragonard had painted over another painting he had done of a young girl. This painting was one of a series of paintings featuring young girls. Fragonard preferred to make lighthearted, erotic pictures for his private clients and patrons. The cheerfulness seemed to reflect the Rococo style. Fragonard learned different techniques to make him unique, which shows in his art and the brush strokes he chose to use.

Facts Came From:

http://www.nga.gov/cgi-bin/tbio?tperson=1316&type=a

http://www.aaronartprints.org/fragonard-thereader.php