The era of Rococo painting is best characterized by the wealthy French patrons that commissioned the works, and the painting “The Bath of Diana” by Francois Boucher is no exception. Painted in 1742, it is a classic example of the opulent idealism of Rococo art. The favored subject matter of the period most notably includes depictions of fetes galantes, outdoor social gatherings celebrating romance and the trappings of society life at Court. Boucher specialized in these types of paintings, and also served as director to The Royal academy and Court painter to Louis the XV. He was the favorite painter of Louis XV’s extremely powerful mistress, Madame du Pompadour. While “The Bath of Diana” is not a fetes galantes, it exemplifies the ideals of Rococo sentimentality and self indulgence through the depiction of its cosseted and Court-like goddess Diana.
The primary focus of the painting is Diana and her lady in attendance. They are strategically bathed in a glowing ethereal light that contrasts starkly with the darker landscape that recedes into the background. All other action or symbolism in the painting is secondary to the two female nudes at the paintings center, including her hunting dogs, arrows, and the spoils of the hunt, which are all relegated to the edges of the picture plane, where they serve only to indicate Diana’s identity. The soft, lushly rendered landscape is typical of the Rococo, and as things recede further into space, they become more dreamlike and hazy. Rather than the fit, athletic build one would typically associate with the goddess of the hunt, this Diana is representative of the beauty ideals of the aristocratic French Court, and as such is soft, rounded and feminine, with very delicate features, and soft peaches and cream skin. Her hair is perfectly golden and elaborately coiffed in the style of the era, and it is clear that Bouchon was more concerned with conveying his contemporary ideals of beauty than an actual realistic depiction of what the real Diana may have been like. In fact, the context of Diana on the hunt could very well have merely been a device for having the freedom to paint women in the nude, which was quite popular but required an appropriate context in order to not be deemed gratuitous. The palette of the painting is also typically Rococo, with warm pinks, yellows and oranges gently contrasted against rich blues and greens.
What is most personally striking about the painting is the expression on the face of Diana; she is vacant, looking generally disinterested in her situation. Her expression almost lends itself to a naivety, or alarming apathy. Perhaps Bouchon was attempting to convey an aloofness befitting aristocracy, but it reads more like a lack of intellectual activity. There is something subtly erotic about the intimacy between the two nude women, the ease with which they are keeping company. There are no indications of modesty, only an easiness and familiarity that could be observed as sensual.
Bouchon established himself alongside Watteau as one of the preeminent painters of the Rococo era by infusing his work with a lightness and delicacy so favored by the French patrons at the time. “The Bath of Diana” is simultaneously sensual, superficial, and decadent, all traits embodied by the aristocracy that so heavily patronized the artists of the 18th century.
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