Creator story
Surprising fact
The Academy created a special category — fête galante — just to admit Watteau, since his work fit no existing genre.
Source: Wikipedia / WikimediaRococo
Antoine Watteau
Antoine Watteau (1684–1721) invented the fête galante — dreamy scenes of elegant figures at play in idyllic parks. His delicate, melancholy art opened the Rococo age.
Watteau brought a new poetic mood and tenderness to French painting, shaping the entire Rococo style.
- Invented the dreamy fête galante genre.
- Brought melancholy and poetry to Rococo painting.
- Died young of tuberculosis at just 36.
Key works
A key work by Antoine Watteau
These works make it easiest to see how the artist changed form, content, and the very way art could exist in culture.
1717
The Embarkation for Cythera
The Embarkation for Cythera is one of Antoine Watteau's defining works.