Repos de Chasse (Rest from Hunting)

Art Historical Context

Created in 1766 by French printmaker François-Philippe Charpentier after an original design by Dutch artist Jacob de Wit, *Repos de Chasse* captures a moment of leisure following the hunt. De Wit, celebrated for his graceful ceiling decorations and grisaille works that imitated classical reliefs, often infused such scenes with lively figures and decorative elegance. Charpentier’s reproductive print translates this vitality into a refined graphic medium suited for wider appreciation. The work employs etching combined with aquatint, printed in warm brown ink on laid paper—a technique that allowed subtle tonal gradations resembling wash drawings. This approach highlights Charpentier’s innovations in printmaking during the mid-eighteenth century, when reproductive prints played a vital role in disseminating paintings and decorative motifs across Europe. Measuring just over eight inches in height, the intimate scale invites close viewing of the figures’ relaxed poses and the surrounding landscape details. Acquired through the Pepita Milmore Memorial Fund, this impression now resides in the National Gallery of Art’s collection of works on paper, offering visitors insight into the collaborative nature of eighteenth-century art and the enduring appeal of sporting themes in European visual culture.