Frame, Cartouche, Bracket, and Paneling Designs
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-316-1
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Created by French artist Jean-Baptiste Girard, active circa 1750 to 1771, this print titled "Frame, Cartouche, Bracket, and Paneling Designs" dates from 1754 to 1769. It presents a series of ornamental designs intended for architectural features such as picture frames, decorative cartouches, supporting brackets, and wall paneling. As a print, this work exemplifies how artists of the era used reproducible media to share innovative decorative ideas with a wider audience of craftsmen and patrons. During the mid-eighteenth century in France, there was a flourishing of elaborate interior decoratio...