1767
chalk
paper
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Dominant colour
Venus appuyee sur son cher Adonis ... is a 1767 chalk by François Boucher, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This drawing shows a group of soft, rounded figures lounging in a dreamy landscape. The biggest figure, a woman with long hair, leans on a man who lies beneath her. Around them, smaller figures float or sit, all wrapped in flowing drapery. The sky is a pale, smudged blue, and the ground looks like soft moss. The artist used only black and white chalk on faded blue paper, giving it a ghostly, sketchy feel. The figures blend into the background, almost like they’re part of the same cloudy world. Next, check out chiaroscuro to see how light and shadow create mood in art.
François Boucher was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher, who worked in the Rococo style.
See the richer artist page
