La Culbute (The Tumble)

1766

François-Philippe Charpentier after Jean-Honoré Fragonard, published by Pierre-François Basan

Associated Names
François-Philippe Charpentier

Artist, French, 1734 - 1817

Pierre-François Basan

Publisher, French, 1723 - 1797

Jean Honoré Fragonard

Artist After, French, 1732 - 1806

This is a painting of a chaotic domestic scene in a rustic interior setting. The image shows a moment of turmoil with scattered items and two figures tumbling in the foreground. A third figure stands in the doorway, adding to the sense of movement and drama. The setting includes wooden structures and tools, with a warm sepia tone giving it a vintage quality. Detailed elements like beams, a partially open door, and foliage are also depicted. The style is reminiscent of Jean-Honoré Fragonard's lively compositions.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching and aquatint printed in brown on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Widener Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 27.6 × 39.3 cm (10 7/8 × 15 1/2 in.)
    plate: 30 × 41.7 cm (11 13/16 × 16 7/16 in.)
    sheet: 34 × 47 cm (13 3/8 × 18 1/2 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1942.9.2312

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    IFF (1700), no. 37, State ii/ii

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Widener Collection; gift to NGA, 1942.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1988

  • Graphic Survey Show, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., June 1988.

2003

  • Colorful Impressions: The Printmaking Revolution in Eighteenth-Century France, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2003-2004, no. 11, as La Culbute (The Tumble).

2021

  • Aquatint: From Its Origins to Goya, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2021 - 2022.

Bibliography

1930

  • IFF (1700): no. 37, ii/ii

2021

  • Hoisington, Rena. Aquatint: From Its Origins to Goya. Washington, 2021: 43, fig. 11.

Inscriptions

recto: in plate, below image, at left: frangonard inv.; in plate, below image, at center: LA CULBUTE / A Paris chés Basan; in plate, below image, at right: Charpentier Sculp; verso: in graphite, at lower left: F 397

Watermarks

AUVERGNE 1742

Wikidata ID

Q64956817

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