History, painting, and the seriousness of pleasure in the age... - 9781789620399

History, painting, and the seriousness of pleasure in the age of Louis XVAuthor(s): Susanna Caviglia\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: Liverpool University Press, United Kingdom\nImprint: Voltaire Foundation\nISBN-13: 9781789620399, 978-1789620399\nSynopsis\nFrench painting of Louis XVs reign [tel], generally categorized by the term rococo, has typically been understood as an artistic style aimed at furnishing courtly society with delightful images of its own frivolous pursuits. Instead, this book shows the significance and seriousness underpinning the notion of pleasure embedded in eighteenth-century history painting. During this time, pleasure became a moral ideal grounded not only in domestic life but also defining a range of social, political, and cultural transactions oriented toward transforming and improving society at large. \n\nHistory, painting, and the seriousness of pleasure in the age of Louis XV reconsiders the role of history painting in creating a new\nvisual language th.