born April 5, 1732, Grasse, Fr.
died Aug. 22, 1806, Paris
French painter.
He studied with Giovanni Battista Tiepolo . In 1765 his large historical painting Coresus Sacrifices Himself to Save Callirhoë was purchased for Louis XV and won Fragonard election to the French Royal Academy. He soon abandoned this style to concentrate on landscapes in the manner of Jacob van Ruisdael , portraits, and the decorative, erotic outdoor party scenes for which he became famous (e.g., The Swing , с 1766). The gentle hedonism of such party scenes epitomized the {{link=Rococo style">Rococo style . Although the greater part of his active life was passed during the Neoclassical period, he continued to paint in a Rococo idiom until shortly before the French Revolution, when he lost his patrons and livelihood.
"The Swing," detail, oil on canvas by Jean-Honoré Fragonard, c. 1766; in ...
By courtesy of the trustees of the Wallace Collection, London