Baby’s Naptime

Oil on canvas in 18th century gilt frame

Painting Size: 16” x 12.75”
Frame Size: 22.75 ” x 18”

A charming genre scene typical of the reinterpretation of history in art in the nineteenth century with cavaliers playing with their children rather than engaging in battle. In France, the process of the trivialization of history painting began early in the century: the school known as the Troubadours tended towards a romanticized, intimate view of the past. As the century progressed these family interiors with figures in the garb of the previous century became popular in Spain, Italy, Britain, Germany, Holland and Belgium. It was the appeal of a glimpse into the intimate past, the pleasure of prying into the houses and wardrobes of our ancestors.

Source:
Hook, Philip and Poltimore, Mark. "Popular 19th Century Painting"