Children with dead game 1751 - 1761

Robert Joseph Auguste crafted this terracotta sculpture titled "Children with Dead Game" in eighteenth-century France. It's a small, intimate piece depicting two cherubic children amidst the spoils of a hunt. The image creates meaning through visual codes. In that era, hunting was associated with the aristocracy, embodying leisure and power. Auguste's choice to portray children with dead game introduces a layer of complexity. Are they innocent participants in a culture of privilege, or is there an implied critique of the social structures of the time? France was marked by stark social inequalities, with the aristocracy enjoying privileges unavailable to the majority. Understanding the era's customs and class structure is key. We can look into archival sources and studies of French society at the time to see how artistic choices such as this engaged with social norms. The role of the historian is essential in interpreting art as something contingent on its social and institutional context.