The Reading

c. 1765/1775

Jean-Honoré Fragonard

Associated Names
Jean Honoré Fragonard

Artist, French, 1732 - 1806

The image shows two people sitting side by side, facing each other. One person is seen in profile, while the other has their back mostly turned. The person in profile has delicate facial features and wears a high-necked garment with long sleeves and their hair styled up with a dark floral accessory. The other person's face is not visible, and they have short hair or an updo. The person in profile is dressed in an elaborate flowing dress, while the other individual wears a simpler outfit with a shawl-like garment over their shoulders. The background features lightly sketched indoor elements, and the image is in a monochromatic tone.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    brown wash on wove paper

  • Credit Line

    The Armand Hammer Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall: 28.2 x 21 cm (11 1/8 x 8 1/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1991.217.16

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Ananoff 1961, no. 62

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

H. Walferdin [d. 1863], Paris, (sale, Paris, 12-16 April 1880, no. 1921); John Postle Heseltine [1843-1929], London; Capt. Edward H. Molyneux [1891-1974], Paris; Mrs. Jesse I. Straus, New York (sale, New York, Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., 21 Oct 1970, no. 32); Armand Hammer Collection, Los Angeles, CA; gift to NGA, 1991.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1909

  • National Loan Exhibition in Aid of National Gallery Funds, Grafton Galleries, London, 1909-10, no. 99.

1914

  • Paintings and Drawings by Fragonard, E. Gimpel and Wildenstein & Co., Inc., New York, 1914, no. 31.

1928

  • La Vie Parisienne au XVIIIe Siecle, Musée Carnavalet, Paris, 1928, no. 165.

1931

  • Exposition de Dessins de Fragonard, Galerie Jacques Seligmann et Fils, Ancien Hôtel de Sagan, Paris, 1931, no. 55.

1971

  • Exhibited with the Armand Hammer collection from 1971, starting with Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock.

Bibliography

1889

  • Baron Roger Portalis, Honoré Fragonard, sa vie et son oeuvre, Paris, 1889, 307.

1900

  • Drawings by François Boucher, J.-H. Fragonard and Antoine Watteau in the Collection of J.P. Heseltine, London, 1900, p. 39, no. 4 (engraving by Jules de Goncourt illustrated instead of drawing).

1913

  • Dessins de l'école français du XVIIIe siècle, provenant de la Collection Heseltine, Paris, 1913, no. 32.

1961

  • Ananoff, Alexandre. L'oeuvre dessiné de Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732 - 1806). 4 vols. Paris, 1961-1970.

Wikidata ID

Q64581230

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