The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 20, 2024

Costumed Dancers Performing in a Garden Tavern

Costumed Dancers Performing in a Garden Tavern

1756
(French, 1724–1780)
France, 18th century
brush and brown and gray wash, with gouache, watercolor, and traces of graphite
Sheet: 19.8 x 31.3 cm (7 13/16 x 12 5/16 in.); Secondary Support: 19.8 x 31.3 cm (7 13/16 x 12 5/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1966.124
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Gabriel de Saint-Aubin reused the female dancer in another drawing from 1760.

Description

Gabriel de Saint-Aubin was known for his rapidly executed, sketchy style, often used to depict performances and social scenes. The exaggerated lifted legs of the dancers seen here imply a comic, theatrical style; no social dance during the 18th century would have permitted such pronounced gestures, especially for a woman. Both dancers wear jackets with irregular hemlines decorated with round bells similar to those found on jesters’ costumes. The lanterns and swags of flowers strung from trees and the small orchestra playing on the right suggest a guinguette, or outdoor tavern with a pleasure garden.
  • ?-at least 1951
    John S. Thacher [1904-1982], Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Washington
    ?-by 1966
    Member of the Rothschild family
    1966
    (Rosenberg & Stiebel, Inc., New York, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH)
    1966-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    Provenance Footnotes
    1 Listed as owner in Tietze 1947, 216. Letter in CMA curatorial files confirms that Thacher still owned the work in 1951. Most of Thacher's collection is now in the Morgan Library, New York; see Stephanie Wiles, "The John S. Thacher Bequest," in Charles Ryskamp, ed. Twenty-First Report to the Fellows of the Pierpont Morgan Library 1984-1986 [New York, 1989], 311-13.
    2 According to letter from Saemy Rosenberg, CMA archives.
  • Parker, K.T. "Notes on Drawings: Gabriel de Saint-Aubin." Old Master Drawings 48 (March 1938): 58. Mentioned: p. 58; Reproduced: plate 60
    The Stage: A Loan Exhibition for the Benefit of the Public Education Association. Exh. Cat. New York: Jacques Seligmann & Co., Inc., 1939. Mentioned and reproduced: no. 7
    Tietze, Hans. European Master Drawings in the United States. New York: J.J. Augustin, 1947. Mentioned and reproduced: no. 108
    French Painting, 1100-1900. Exh. Cat. Pittsburgh: Carnegie Institute, 1951. Mentioned and reproduced: no. 144
    Cailleux, Jean. "An Unpublished Painting by Saint-Aubin: 'Le Bal champêtre." Burlington Magazine 102, no. 686 (May 1960): i-iv, Mentioned: pp. iii-iv
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 139 archive.org
    Stechow, Wolfgang. "Cleveland's Golden Anniversary Acquisitions." Artnews 65, no. 5 (September 1966): 30-64. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 43
    "Collections et collectionneurs." La Chronique des Arts, supplément à la Gazette des Beaux-Arts 1173 (October 1966): 4-6. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 5
    Richards, Louise S. "Gabriel de Saint-Aubin: Fête in a Park with Costumed Dancers." Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 54 (September 1967): 215-218. Mentioned and reproduced: pp. 215-218
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 139 archive.org
    Rosenberg, Pierre. French Master Drawings of the 17th & 18th Centuries in North American Collections. Translated by Catherine Johnston. Exh. Cat. Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 1972. Mentioned: p. 208, no. 130; Reproduced: p. 87
    Carlson, Victor, Ellen D'Oench, and Richard S. Field. Prints and Drawings by Gabriel De Saint-Aubin, 1724-1780. Exh. Cat. Middletown, CT: Davison Art Center, 1975. Mentioned: pp. 76-77, no. 41; Reproduced: 87
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 183 archive.org
    McCullagh, Suzanne Folds. "The Development of Gabriel de Saint-Aubin (1724-1780) as a Draughtsman." PhD diss., Harvard University, 1981. Mentioned: pp. 183-185; Reproduced: no. 156
    de Beaumont, Kim. "Reconsidering Gabriel de Saint-Aubin (1724-1780): The Background for his Scenes of Paris." PhD diss., New York University, 1998. Mentioned: pp. 318-319, 336 n. 326; Reproduced: p. 724
    DeGrazia, Diane, and Carter E. Foster. Master Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Exh. Cat. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2000. Mentioned: pp. 112-113, p. 289, no. 42; Reproduced: p. 113
    Bailey, Colin B., Kim de Beaumont, Suzanne Folds McCullagh, et al. Gabriel de Saint-Aubin (1724-1780). Exh. Cat. New York: Frick Collection, 2007. Mentioned and reproduced: no. 49
  • Themes and Variations: Musical Drawings and Prints. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 25-May 17, 2015).
    Gabriel de Saint-Aubin. Frick Collection, New York, NY (organizer) (October 30, 2007-January 27, 2008).
    Master Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 27-October 17, 2000); The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, NY (May 23-August 19, 2001); Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston, TX (October 14, 2001-January 6, 2002).
    French Drawings from the Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 13, 1994-March 12, 1995).
    Rococo, Revolution, Restoration. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 11-September 24, 1989).
    Treasures on Paper. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 10-July 24, 1988).
    National Schools of Style. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 14-September 18, 1983).
    Northern European Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 16, 1982-January 9, 1983).
    Prints and Drawings by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin, 1724-1780. Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT (March 7-April 13, 1975); The Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD (organizer) (April 25-June 8, 1975).
    French Master Drawings of the 17th and 18th Centuries in North American Collections. Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Legion of Honor, San Francisco, CA (September 2-October 15, 1972); Art Gallery of Ontario, Ontario M5T 1G4, Canada (organizer) (September 2-October 15, 1972); National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ont.,, Canada (November 3-December 17, 1972); The New York Cultural Center, New York, NY (April 4-May 13, 1973).
    Golden Anniversary of Acquisitions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 10-October 16, 1966).
    French Painting, 1100-1900. Carnegie Institute, Department of Fine Arts, Pittsburgh, PA (October 18 - December 2, 1951).
    The Stage: A Loan Exhibition for the Benefit of the Public Education Association. Jacques Seligmann & Co, Inc., New York (April 3 - April 22, 1939).
  • {{cite web|title=Costumed Dancers Performing in a Garden Tavern|url=false|author=Gabriel de Saint-Aubin|year=1756|access-date=20 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1966.124