Spring
Jean-Baptiste Pater·c. 1720–36
Historical Context
Jean-Baptiste Pater's Spring (c. 1720-36) belongs to a set of allegorical paintings representing the four seasons, a traditional subject that Pater reinterpreted through the lens of the fête galante genre he inherited from his teacher Watteau. Rather than depicting seasons through traditional mythological figures or agricultural labor, Pater shows elegant young people enjoying seasonal pleasures in idealized garden settings. These decorative works were designed for aristocratic interiors, where they would be installed as overdoor paintings or as part of coordinated room schemes.
Technical Analysis
Pater's delicate brushwork creates shimmering effects in the silks and satins of his figures, with a light, airy palette of pinks, blues, and greens set against a soft landscape that dissolves into atmospheric distance in the Watteau tradition.
Provenance
Probably Victor-Amédée, prince de Carignan [1690-1741], Paris, France; Held in trust by the Estate of the prince de Carignan; Mantacheff collection, St. Petersburg, sold to Wildenstein & Co; (Wildenstein & Co., Paris, France, sold to Henry G. Dalton); Henry G. Dalton [1862-1939], Cleveland, OH, by descent to his nephew, Harry D. Kendrick; Harry D. Kendrick [1894-1958], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
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