Design for a Fan: Courtly Figures in a Landscape

mid 17th century

Noël Cochin

Associated Names
Noël Cochin

Printmaker, French, 1622 - 1695

The image shows a landscape with a decorative border featuring scroll and foliage motifs. The horizon is positioned slightly above the center, with buildings and trees reaching towards a cloudy sky. In the central scene, there are figures engaging in various activities. The etching technique uses fine lines to create texture and depth, particularly in the depiction of trees and clothing. The color palette is monochromatic in shades of black and white for contrast and detail. Closest to the viewer, a group of figures interact, while smaller groups and individuals are scattered across the open space towards water and distant structures. The ornate frame accentuates the scene and its impact.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching and engraving on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed within plate mark): 28.4 x 21.5 cm (11 3/16 x 8 7/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1994.47.2

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Meaume 1860, no. 1006, State (the copy)

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Probably Gosselin, Paris; acquired February 1912 by Henri Vever [1854-1942], Paris.[1 Christopher Mendez, London; purchased 1994 by NGA.

[1] Henri Vever papers, Freer-Sackler Gallery Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, lists a "Colin Maillard" etching by Cochin aquired on this date.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1860

  • Meaume, Edouard. Recherches sur la vie et les ouvrages de Jacques Callot. 2 vols. Paris: Vve Jules Renouard, 1860.

Inscriptions

lower center in plate: Balthasar Moncornet ex a paris Cum pri; by later hand, upper left verso in graphite: No 1006 . 1er Etat. 3.00; by later hand, center verso in graphite: No 1006 / L'Eventail representant / un danse

Wikidata ID

Q75125179