Groep figuren c. 1765 - 1775

Jean-Honoré Fragonard made this sketch of a group of figures some time in the 18th century. Here we see Fragonard’s first thoughts, a kind of visual note jotted down for future reference. The sketch gives us a glimpse into the culture of artistic production at the time. Fragonard was a successful artist who worked within the patronage system. Aristocrats would commission paintings, and artists like Fragonard had to produce work that appealed to their tastes and social values. The Rijksmuseum, like other museums, collects and preserves these traces of the past. Art historians can look at preparatory drawings like these, along with letters, biographies, and other historical documents, to understand the social and economic context of artmaking.