Past Exhibition

Soap Bubbles of Jean-Siméon Chardin

A young man and child, both with pale skin, are framed within the rectangular opening of a stone window in this vertical painting. At the center, the young man leans toward us over his forearms, which rest on the wide ledge. Angled to our right, he holds a long straw to his mouth to blow a large, glistening bubble that hangs on the opposite end. A second straw rests in a glass cup filled with white liquid, presumably soapy water, that sits near his right elbow, on our left, and he looks down at the bubble. His chestnut-brown hair is tied back with a black ribbon, and curls hang down from his temple. He wears a brown jacket over a white shirt. A younger child peeks over the ledge to our right and also looks at the bubble. Seen from the nose up, the child wears a hat that curves up and over the crown of the head. The face of the brown stone building into which the window is cut seems close to us. A vine of ivy climbs up the face of the building to our left.
Jean Siméon Chardin, Soap Bubbles, probably 1733/1734, oil on canvas, Gift of Mrs. John W. Simpson, 1942.5.1

Details

  • Dates

    -

  • Locations

    West Building, Main Floor, Gallery 75
A young man and child, both with pale skin, are framed within the rectangular opening of a stone window in this vertical painting. At the center, the young man leans toward us over his forearms, which rest on the wide ledge. Angled to our right, he holds a long straw to his mouth to blow a large, glistening bubble that hangs on the opposite end. A second straw rests in a glass cup filled with white liquid, presumably soapy water, that sits near his right elbow, on our left, and he looks down at the bubble. His chestnut-brown hair is tied back with a black ribbon, and curls hang down from his temple. He wears a brown jacket over a white shirt. A younger child peeks over the ledge to our right and also looks at the bubble. Seen from the nose up, the child wears a hat that curves up and over the crown of the head. The face of the brown stone building into which the window is cut seems close to us. A vine of ivy climbs up the face of the building to our left.
Jean Siméon Chardin, Soap Bubbles, probably 1733/1734, oil on canvas, Gift of Mrs. John W. Simpson, 1942.5.1

Overview: 3 versions of Soap Bubbles were on view. The paintings came from the National Gallery of Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They were shown together with supporting material, including Chardin's painting of a woman playing knucklebones, a pendant of one version of Soap Bubbles; engravings made by Pierre Filloeul after Soap Bubbles and after Knucklebones; and x-radiographs of the paintings.

Organization: Philip Conisbee, curator of European painting and sculpture, and Joseph Fronek, senior conservator of paintings, both from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, organized the exhibition. Peter Lukehart, Mellon assistant curator of southern baroque painting, and Marcia Kupfer, associate curator of education exhibition programs, coordinated the exhibition at the National Gallery. Gaillard Ravenel and Mark Leithauser designed the exhibition, and Gordon Anson designed the lighting.

Attendance: 103,251

Brochure: Soap Bubbles of Jean-Siméon Chardin, by Marcia Kupfer. Washington, DC: National Gallery of Art, 1991.

Other Venues:

  • Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 10/18/1990–01/20/1991
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 02/19/1991–06/16/1991

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