Fan - scenes from Don Quijote

The zenith of the European fashion fan was in the 18th century. Heroes of ancient myths or contemporary literature frequently appeared on fans, based on contemporary paintings or engravings. The recto of the fan shows three scenes from Cervantes’ popular novel Don Quixote, taken from paintings by the French royal court painter Charles-Antoine Coypel (1694–1752), an artist who was also endowed with literary talents. These formed the basis of the 18th century’s most popular tapestry series (some pieces are now in the Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles). Louis Surugue acquired exclusive rights to reproduce Coypel’s paintings between 1721 and 1744, and the Don Quixote story appeared on engravings in Paris in 1723–1724. These are the basis for the subtly shaded, refined painting on the fan, which thus indirectly follows Coypel’s paintings. Of particularly high standard is the sea port landscape on the verso of the fan, which suggests the influence of contemporary Netherlandish painting. The lacquer painting used the then-popular vernis Martin technique, an attempt to imitate Far Eastern lacquer painting. Also indicating oriental influences are the chinoiserie scenes on the sticks of the fan.