Two Designs for Cradles
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-456-26
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
This print presents two ornate designs for cradles by Jean-Charlesafosse, a leading French architect and ornamental designer active in the mid-to-late th century. Though Delafosse himself lived from 1734 to 1789, the dates to 1849–, indicating it is a later reproduction that helped preserve and circulate his original drawings long after his death. Delafosse worked at a pivotal moment when French decorative arts were shifting from the playful curves of the Rococo toward the more structured, classical forms of early Neoclassicism. His designs frequently combined sculptural grandeur, allegorical...