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Jean-Baptiste Joseph Pater

ca. 1734 · Oil on canvas · European Paintings

This delicate pastel landscape with elegant figures illustrates what Pater avowed: that he owed everything to Watteau. The ladies' dresses are more or less contemporary while the short jacket, ruff, and shoe ribbons of the man with the walking stick are reminiscent of costumes for the theater. The marble putti with a dolphin must form part of a fountain hidden in shrubbery. They underline the playful nature of the subject. The painting is one of a pair. The pendant, signed and dated 1734, is in the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid.

Artist

Jean-Baptiste Joseph Pater

Date

ca. 1734

Medium

Oil on canvas

Department

European Paintings

Credit line

Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1937