Born in the northern French city of Valenciennes, Watteau took a winding path from copyist to becoming a member of the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture. His morceau de réception was approved in 1717 under the newly established category of fêtes galantes. These enigmatic scenes focused on themes of love and flirtation set in fantastical park landscapes. The elegant figures, dressed in contemporary or theatrical costumes, were not arranged to follow explicit narratives but were instead based on individual life studies that filled his sketchbooks.
Study of a Woman's Head and Hands
Red and white chalk and graphite on off-white laid paper • 19 x 12.7 cm
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Antoine Watteau