Reflections on the Collection: The Edmond J. Safra Visiting Professors at the National Gallery of Art: Marc Fumaroli on Jean Honor?? Fragonard?s Landscape Paintings (c. 1775/1780)

Description

Marc Fumaroli (professor emeritus at the Coll??ge de France and former Edmond J. Safra Visiting Professor at the National Gallery of Art) examines four landscape paintings by Jean Honor?? Fragonard from the period 1775/1780: A Game of Hot Cockles, Blindman?s Buff, The Swing, and A Game of Horse and Rider. In contrast to the pleasure-seeking pursuits usually identified in these garden scenes, Fumaroli sees fearful apprehension in Fragonard?s ambiguous depiction of natural settings and human expressions.