Where can I see Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau?

Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau is held by National Gallery of Art.

What movement is Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau?

Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau is associated with Baroque.

Artwork

Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau

Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau is an ink print by the Baroque artist Jean-Baptiste Rigaud. It dates from 1746 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.

About this work

Overview

Jean‑Baptiste Rigaud’s 1746 print, titled *Vue du Bassin de Latone Prise du Bord de la Terrasse du Chateau*, presents a garden vista centered on a large fountain. The composition captures a bustling promenade of elegantly dressed figures moving along pathways that wind among trees and statues, offering a snapshot of aristocratic leisure in an eighteenth‑century landscaped setting.

Subject & Meaning

The scene portrays members of the upper class strolling, conversing, and pausing beside the fountain, reflecting the social rituals of garden promenade popular in the Baroque era. The inclusion of formal attire, hat‑clad men and women in long gowns, underscores notions of status and decorum, while the orderly arrangement of paths and statuary suggests an idealized harmony between nature and cultivated art.

Technique & Style

Executed as an etching and engraving, Rigaud employs fine, intersecting lines and delicate hatching to model volume and convey atmospheric depth.

Executed as an etching and engraving, Rigaud employs fine, intersecting lines and delicate hatching to model volume and convey atmospheric depth. The meticulous rendering of foliage, stonework, and textile folds demonstrates the printmaker’s skill in translating a three‑dimensional garden scene onto paper, characteristic of the detailed, controlled aesthetic of mid‑eighteenth‑century French printmaking.

History & Provenance

Created in 1746, the print is attributed to Rigaud, a French artist active in the decorative arts of the period. While specific ownership records are limited, the work has been catalogued among prints documenting French aristocratic estates, indicating its role as both a visual record and a collectible image of contemporary garden architecture.