Glencoe World History © 2010

Chapter 17: Revolution and Enlightenment

Student Web Activity Lesson Plans

Rococo Art

Introduction

Rococo art was an important element of French culture during the Enlightenment. The style is highly suggestive of the attitudes and atmosphere in the royal court during the period leading up to the French Revolution. In this activity students will read about three rococo painters and how they experienced the shift from rococo to neoclassicism.

Lesson Description
Students will go to a Web site about rococo art that includes brief biographies of the rococo artists François Boucher, Jean-Honore Fragonard, and Elizabeth Vigée-Lebrun. Student will read the information and answer four questions about what they have read. They will then analyze the impact of political and social attitudes on art or literature.

Instructional Objectives
The learner will be able to compare different artists of the rococo period.
The learner will be able to analyze the impact of political and social attitudes on art or literature.

Student Web Activity Answers

1. Rococo art can be described as delicate, playful, and sometimes provocative. The subject matter usually focused on aristocratic scenes.



2. He designed stage sets, provided models for the Sévres porcelain factory, and designs for the Beauvais and Goebelins tapestry factories.



3. Boucher had fallen out of favor by the early 1770s. With the rise of neoclassicism, his style was criticized for being overly sentimental, too easily achieved, and superficial.



4. Fragonard's almost abstract compositions and quick, hurried strokes distinguish him from Boucher.



5. Students' essays will vary. Their essays should contain information about Vigée-Lebrun working for aristocrats and how, during the French Revolution, she had to flee France because of her reputation as a supporter of the monarchy and the aristocracy. Students' comparisons to other examples of art and literature will vary.