Floor plan

Style galleriesNeoclassicism

Neoclassicism

The painting depicts three children within an oval frame, their upper bodies visible. The central child, a young girl, is positioned with her body facing forward and her head turned slightly to the left. She has a fair complexion, with rosy cheeks, pink lips, and wide brown eyes. Her hair is gray and partially pulled back by a blue ribbon. She is dressed in a white garment with a yellow shawl draped over her shoulders. Her arms are outstretched, holding the ends of a cloth that has been pinned on her dress. Her arms and the cloth extend forward beyond the oval frame that encircles the trio, as if the frame is a window or porthole that she is reaching out of. On the right, a boy leans on the girl's shoulder, also facing to the left, seen in profile. He has light brown, curly hair and a fair complexion. He wears a dark blue-green jacket over a white collar, and he is looking upward towards the third child. On the left, another boy, who also has light skin and light brown curly hair, appears to stand on a chair above the other two children. He is holding a long yellow straw up to his lips. At the other end of the straw, a large bubble hangs over the white cloth that the girl holds out. In his other hand is a small white dish. He wears a muted brown outfit with a dark cloth wrapped around him. The background within the frame is plain gray, and the frame that surrounds the children is light gray and appears to be carved with leaf designs. Beyond the oval frame is gray.
The Artist in His Room at the Villa Medici, Rome, by Léon Cogniet, 1817
Germain-Augustin and Rose de Saint-Aubin, Drawn by Their Uncle, by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin, 1766
The image shows a dense, forested area with towering trees. The composition leads the eye along a pathway into the distance, without a distinct horizon line. The intricate brushstrokes depict the texture and foliage of the trees, suggesting movement and light filtering through the leaves. The color palette is rich and earthy, with shades of green, brown, yellow, and orange, creating a vibrant yet tranquil atmosphere emphasizing light and shadow.
We look up through an opening surrounded by a stone ledge, with clusters of people and clouds swirling into a blue sky up and away from us in this vertical, rectangular painting. From a distance, the scene looks like a complete illusion but up close, the people, clouds, and architecture are sketchily painted. The ledge running around the opening has a gold, oval medallion at each corner. Appearing to be carved from white stone, two bearded men with long hair recline against each medallion, flanking them to each side in front of large shells that curve up over the people and frames them. A few architectural structures extend up into the sky, including a pointed obelisk in the lower left corner, a pair of columns at the upper right, and what seems to be the mast of a ship at the top left. Most of the people have pale skin but some have more tan complexions, and a few, including those wearing feather headdresses near the upper left corner, have brown skin. The people wear windswept robes of pale, butter yellow, robin’s egg blue, rose pink, and ivory. The eye may drawn to a few vignettes, such as the man holding a rearing, chestnut-brown horse on the illusionistic ledge near the lower right, a nun wearing a white robe and holding a cross above him in the clouds, and, farthest away, a crowned person sitting on a throne.
DESIGNS FOR ORNAMENTAL ARABESQUE MOTIFS
A work made of graphite, on tan wove paper, perimeter mounted on ivory laid paper.
Portrait of a Boy, ca. 1800

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Europe turns back to Greece and Rome: clear line, calm figures and civic virtue.

First room, north wall

  1. The painting depicts three children within an oval frame, their upper bodies visible. The central child, a young girl, is positioned with her body facing forward and her head turned slightly to the left. She has a fair complexion, with rosy cheeks, pink lips, and wide brown eyes. Her hair is gray and partially pulled back by a blue ribbon. She is dressed in a white garment with a yellow shawl draped over her shoulders. Her arms are outstretched, holding the ends of a cloth that has been pinned on her dress. Her arms and the cloth extend forward beyond the oval frame that encircles the trio, as if the frame is a window or porthole that she is reaching out of. On the right, a boy leans on the girl's shoulder, also facing to the left, seen in profile. He has light brown, curly hair and a fair complexion. He wears a dark blue-green jacket over a white collar, and he is looking upward towards the third child. On the left, another boy, who also has light skin and light brown curly hair, appears to stand on a chair above the other two children. He is holding a long yellow straw up to his lips. At the other end of the straw, a large bubble hangs over the white cloth that the girl holds out. In his other hand is a small white dish. He wears a muted brown outfit with a dark cloth wrapped around him. The background within the frame is plain gray, and the frame that surrounds the children is light gray and appears to be carved with leaf designs. Beyond the oval frame is gray.
    Soap BubblesCharles Amédée Philippe Van Loo, 1764Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. The Artist in His Room at the Villa Medici, Rome, by Léon Cogniet, 1817
    The Artist in His Room at the Villa Medici, RomeLéon Cogniet, 1817Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. Germain-Augustin and Rose de Saint-Aubin, Drawn by Their Uncle, by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin, 1766
    Germain-Augustin and Rose de Saint-Aubin, Drawn by Their UncleGabriel de Saint-Aubin, 1766Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. The image shows a dense, forested area with towering trees. The composition leads the eye along a pathway into the distance, without a distinct horizon line. The intricate brushstrokes depict the texture and foliage of the trees, suggesting movement and light filtering through the leaves. The color palette is rich and earthy, with shades of green, brown, yellow, and orange, creating a vibrant yet tranquil atmosphere emphasizing light and shadow.
    Rays of Sunlight Striking a Woodland PathFriedrich Salathé, c. 1815Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

First room, south wall

  1. We look up through an opening surrounded by a stone ledge, with clusters of people and clouds swirling into a blue sky up and away from us in this vertical, rectangular painting. From a distance, the scene looks like a complete illusion but up close, the people, clouds, and architecture are sketchily painted. The ledge running around the opening has a gold, oval medallion at each corner. Appearing to be carved from white stone, two bearded men with long hair recline against each medallion, flanking them to each side in front of large shells that curve up over the people and frames them. A few architectural structures extend up into the sky, including a pointed obelisk in the lower left corner, a pair of columns at the upper right, and what seems to be the mast of a ship at the top left. Most of the people have pale skin but some have more tan complexions, and a few, including those wearing feather headdresses near the upper left corner, have brown skin. The people wear windswept robes of pale, butter yellow, robin’s egg blue, rose pink, and ivory. The eye may drawn to a few vignettes, such as the man holding a rearing, chestnut-brown horse on the illusionistic ledge near the lower right, a nun wearing a white robe and holding a cross above him in the clouds, and, farthest away, a crowned person sitting on a throne.
    Wealth and Benefits of the Spanish Monarchy under Charles IIIGiovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1762Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. DESIGNS FOR ORNAMENTAL ARABESQUE MOTIFS
    Designs for Ornamental Arabesque MotifsEtienne de Lavallée-Poussin, 1770Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  3. A work made of graphite, on tan wove paper, perimeter mounted on ivory laid paper.
    Sheet of Sketches: Cavalry Battles and Mounted SoldiersJean Louis André Théodore Géricault, 1813/14Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  4. Portrait of a Boy, ca. 1800
    Portrait of a BoyUnrecorded Italian maker, ca. 1800Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum

Second room, south wall

  1. Portrait of Emma Hamilton, by Angelica Kauffmann, 1791
    Portrait of Emma HamiltonAngelica Kauffmann, 1791Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. MARTYRDOM OF ST. ANDREW
    Martyrdom of St. AndrewFrancesco Coghetti, 1825–50Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  3. A work made of oil on panel.
    Head of a Guillotined ManJean Louis André Théodore Géricault, 1818–19Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  4. Young Woman (possibly a Sex Worker) with a Man (recto); Young Woman Wringing Her Hands over a Man's Naked Body (verso), by Francisco Goya, 1796–97
    Young Woman (possibly a Sex Worker) with a Man (recto); Young Woman Wringing Her Hands over a Man's Naked Body (verso)Francisco Goya, 1796–97Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. A work made of etching in black on ivory laid paper.
    Portrait of Le Roi MaratViller, c. 1795Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. RUSTIC INTERIOR: STAGE DESIGN FOR THE TEATRO DE' FELICINI, BOLOGNA
    Rustic Interior: Stage Design for the Teatro de' Felicini, BolognaAntonio Giuseppe Basoli, ca. 1810Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  3. A work made of oil on canvas.
    Portrait of Constance PipeletJean Baptiste François Désoria, 1797Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  4. This image is a pencil sketch on paper with a monochrome palette of graphite gray. The viewer sees various scenes without a defined horizon line. The upper section shows figures in period clothing, possibly mid-19th century women's fashion. The middle area has abstract architectural forms. In the lower right corner, a sailing ship or boat is sketched with more detail than the rest. The drawing style consists of quick, expressive strokes. The image conveys multiple narrative or compositional ideas on a single sheet.
    Seaside StudiesEugène Isabey, 1830sCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington