Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Evening [1739-41]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Evening [1739-41], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

This picture of contemporary women disporting themselves at a stream is poking fun at the commonly depicted subject of Diana and her maidens. Diana was goddess of the moon.

[Oil on copper, 28.8 x 36.8 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Afternoon [1739-41]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Afternoon [1739-41], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

This is the third in a series of four paintings known as Les Heures du Jour (The Hours of the Day). Two women watch a man and a woman playing backgammon. Gaming was a popular pursuit among the leisured classes of 18th-century France.

[Oil on copper, 28.8 x 36.7 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Morning [1739-41]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Morning [1739-41], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

The four paintings in this series - Morning, Midday, Afternoon, and Evening are also known as Les Heures du Jour (The Hours of the Day). They were painted by February 1741 when engravings of them by Nicolas de Larmessin III were presented to the Academie in Paris. It appears that this painting had been exhibited in the Salon of 1739.

[Oil on copper, 28.3 x 36.4 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Midday [1739-41]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Times of Day: Midday [1739-41], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Three women and a man who have been picking flowers in a garden have stopped by a sundial, inscribed XII. Two of the figures are checking their watches. Lighthearted pursuits were typically shown in the genre scenes of artists like Watteau, Pater and Lancret.

[Oil on copper, 28.6 x 36.9 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Maturity [c.1735]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Maturity [c.1735], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

In the foreground stand two archers, one of whom shoots at an unseen target on top of the pole. Behind them are men and women engaged in amorous pursuits. Such encounters in wooded settings, as shown at left and in the background, had become a popular theme in art, inspired in particular by the paintings of Watteau and prints after them. 

[Oil on canvas, 34.3 x 45.2 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Old Age [c.1735]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Old Age [c.1735], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

A young girl rejects the advances of an old man at the left. At the right two elderly women are seated, one spinning and the other asleep. The seated figures may have been inspired by the peasant scenes of the Le Nain brothers. 

Lancret (1690-1743) was one of the chief followers of Watteau in early 18th-century France, producing 'fetes galantes' (small groups of elegantly attired men and women) and conversation pieces in a style similar to that of Watteau. Like his English contemporary, Hogarth, Lancret profited from prints made after his paintings. Unlike Hogarth, whose work looked at the underside of life, Lancret painted aristocrats engaged in playful pursuits. 

[Oil on canvas, 34.6 x 45.4 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Childhood [c.1735]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Childhood [c.1735], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

Children play within a loggia, pulling along a girl on a toy cart, while a nurse who holds an infant looks on. This is the first of a series of four canvases by Lancret which represent the Four Ages of Man - Childhood, Youth, Maturity, and Old Age. The series, was engraved by Nicolas de Larmessin III; these engravings were announced as issued in July 1735, and it may be assumed that the pictures were painted not long before.

[Oil on canvas, 34.5 x 45.7 cm]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Youth [c.1735]

Nicolas Lancret - The Four Ages of Man: Youth [c.1735], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

A girl pulling on a stocking at the right is attended by a young man standing by her. The centre of attention in the room is another girl bedecked in flowers who admires herself in a mirror. 

[Oil on canvas, 34.3 x 45.3 cm]