10.10.1684 – 18.07.1721

The special poetic charm is distinguished by the paintings of Antoine Watteau, the lightness and plasticity, the special refinement of the color and the decorative characteristic of his works, served as the basis for the addition of the Rococo style.

Antoine Watteau was born on October 10, 1684 in the family of an ordinary carpenter. Father did not have sympathy for the artistic inclinations of his son, although he allowed him to be a disciple of the city artist Jacques-Albert Guérin. When Antoine was eighteen years old, in 1702, he left home and went to Paris, where he settled himself as a copyist. It was hard work, for a small payment, the earned money was barely enough for food.
Biography of Antoine Watteau changed her course in 1703 due to her acquaintance with Claude Gillo. The latter made out the potential of the young artist and offered him the status of a pupil. In the period from 1708 to 1709 Watteau studied with Claude Odran. Communication with these artists has prompted interest in theater and decorative art. A great influence on the work had the works of Rubens, which Antoine studied in the Luxembourg Palace.
Wanting to get to Rome, Antoine Watteau decides to enter the art academy and in 1717 wrote one of his best works – “Pilgrimage to the island of Kiefer”. For this work, he receives a special title “artist gallant festivities.” No less famous is the painting “Capricious Man”, written in 1718. The essence of the scenes of the artist’s paintings is revealed not only by a direct plot, but mostly by the subtlest poeticness, to which they are imbued.

At the end of 1717, Watteau became ill with tuberculosis, in those days it was a death sentence. The disease was reflected in the sadness of his work. For some time he tried to resist, even visited the UK in late 1719 to change the climate. The last days of Antoine Watteau spent in his friend’s country house, he died of illness July 18, 1721. For his 37 years he left to descendants about twenty thousand pictures.
At the end of 1717, Watteau became ill with tuberculosis, in those days it was a death sentence. The disease was reflected in the sadness of his work. For some time he tried to resist, even visited the UK in late 1719 to change the climate. The last days of Antoine Watteau spent in his friend’s country house, he died of illness July 18, 1721. For his 37 years he left to descendants about twenty thousand pictures.