Marking the three hundredth anniversary of Jean Antoine Watteau’s death, this publication takes a close, revealing look at his recently rediscovered painting La Surprise. The painting La Surprise by Jean Antoine Watteau (1684–1721) belongs to a new genre of painting invented by the artist himself—the fête galante. These works, which show graceful open-air gatherings filled with scenes of courtship, music and dance, strolling lovers, and actors, do not so much tell a story as set a mood: one of playful, wistful, nostalgic reverie. Esteemed by collectors in Watteau's day as a work that showed the artist at the height of his skill and success, La Surprise vanished from public view in 1848, not to reemerge for more than a century and a half. Acquired by the Getty Museum in 2017, it has never before been the subject of a dedicated publication. Marking the three hundredth anniversary of Watteau's death, this book considers La Surprise within the context of the artist's oeuvre and discusses the surprising history of collecting Watteau in Los Angeles. This volume is published to accompany an exhibition on view at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center from November 23, 2021, to February 20, 2022.

The essays in Antoine Watteau: Perspectives on the Artist and the Culture of His Time offer a richly textured portrait of the artist's life, work, and reputation for students, specialists, and the general public. The volume brings together art historians whose research is currently defining the field of Watteau studies with scholars from history and literature who have published widely on the political and cultural trends of Watteau's era. Essays include studies of the artist's drawing practice, his relation to the emerging public sphere, and the changing fortunes of his reputation, as well as considerations of art dealing and fashion in Watteau's time. Other essays take up conversation, dance, seduction, and theatricality as essential themes of Watteau's art. This volume will be an indispensable resource for all those interested in the visual culture of Regency France.

Here is the definitive study of the great painter Antoine Watteau (1684-1721), best known for his exquisite fetes galantes--scenes of the pastoral pleasures of elegant society. Until now, critical interpretations of this remarkable artist have been shaped by essentially Romantic views. Donald Posner provides a reassessment of the life and work of Watteau; his account is enriched with reproductions of all of Watteau's paintings and major studies.

Leading scholars shed light on the development of genre painting in this heavily illustrated volume.