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Neoclassicism

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

109 works · hang 8672 ·

The rooms are imagined; every work on their walls is real.

Walk this roomRehang this room

First room, north wall

  1. Comtesse de la Châtre (Marie Charlotte Louise Perrette Aglaé Bontemps, 1762–1848), by Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, 1789
    Comtesse de la Châtre (Marie Charlotte Louise Perrette Aglaé Bontemps, 1762–1848)Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, 1789Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Moonlight falls across several masted ships near a rocky shoreline in this horizontal painting. The sky fills the top three-quarters of the picture. A veil of slate-gray clouds is lit to pearl white around the crisp, full moon at the center of the composition. Patches of denim-blue sky are seen through breaks in the blanket of clouds. Moonlight reflects down the center of rippling, silvery-gray water that laps against a beach close to us, along the bottom edge of the painting. A tent is set up in the lower left corner of the composition. There, two women and one man stand looking at a glowing fire next to the tent. One woman holds a basket on her head, the other tucks a flat basket under one arm. The man stands between the two women, and a fourth man crouches near the fire, his back to us. In the opening of the tent, another woman kneels over a large bowl as she looks at the fire. A fifth person, a man, gazes at the fire as he sits smoking a long-stemmed pipe on a boulder. At the foot of the boulders, a man lies back against some bundles, one arm thrown up over his head. A dog curls up next to his hip. Not far from the sleeping man and in the center of the foreground, a man carries several long wooden objects, possibly oars, over one shoulder while a dog beyond him barks at the lapping surf. The beach curves like a C away from us, along the left. At the point of the curve in the middle distance, a structure like a city wall and gate jut out to the water’s edge. More buildings atop steep cliffs rise vertically beyond the gate. The shoreline curves into the distance again, and more buildings, including a lighthouse, and masted ships there are smoke-gray silhouettes. Near the lower right corner of the painting, four men pull on ropes tied around the prow of a small wooden boat while three others push it toward the land. Another man stands in the far end. A short distance beyond that boat is a tall wooden ship with three masts and rigging outlined against the night sky. Windows along the decks of that boat’s wide stern, angled toward us, glow with golden light. Beyond it and a bit to our left, another ship, smaller in scale, sails away from us. Several more ships move back to the horizon until we only see strokes of white and gray to indicate their unfurled sails.
    MoonlightClaude-Joseph Vernet, 1772Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. A work made of soft ground etching from two plates, with roulette, on paper.
    Portrait of a Man in an Armchair, from Collection d'imitations de Dessins d'après les Principaux Maîtres Hollandais et FlamandsChristian Josi, 1826Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

First room, south wall

  1. The Lictors Bringing Brutus the Bodies of his Sons, by Jacques-Louis David, 1787
    The Lictors Bringing Brutus the Bodies of his SonsJacques-Louis David, 1787Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of oil on canvas.
    Prancing HorseFollower of Jean Louis André Théodore Géricault, 1808–12Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Cupid and Psyche, by Jacques-Louis David, 1817
    Cupid and PsycheJacques-Louis David, 1817Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Second room, south wall

  1. Antoine Laurent Lavoisier (1743–1794) and Marie Anne Lavoisier (Marie Anne Pierrette Paulze, 1758–1836), by Jacques-Louis David, 1788
    Antoine Laurent Lavoisier (1743–1794) and Marie Anne Lavoisier (Marie Anne Pierrette Paulze, 1758–1836)Jacques-Louis David, 1788Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Overdoor Painting, by Pierre Rousseau, 1790s
    Overdoor PaintingPierre Rousseau, 1790sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. 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
  2. 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
  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

Third room, north wall

  1. Overdoor Painting and Double-Leaf Doors, by Pierre Rousseau, 1790s
    Overdoor Painting and Double-Leaf DoorsPierre Rousseau, 1790sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. A work made of oil and ink on paper, laid down on canvas.
    Sketch for The Revolt of CairoAnne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson, c. 1810Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. A work made of black chalk and charcoal with stumping, heightened with white chalk (recto), and black chalk and charcoal with stumping (verso), on dark tan laid paper.
    Standing Academic Male Nude (recto); Sketch of Upper Arm (verso)Eugène Delacroix, 1816Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Third room, south wall

  1. The image shows a landscape with a wooden bridge crossing over a river in a valley. The scenery includes cliffs, trees, and flowing water below. The artwork features fine, detailed brushstrokes depicting the texture of the cliffs, foliage, and water. The color scheme is monochromatic with various shades of gray and sepia tones. Two figures are seen on the bridge, contributing to the sense of scale and activity in the serene setting.
    Im Höllenthal (In the Höllen Valley)Johann Christoph Erhard, 1818Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. Two Men Contemplating the Moon, by Caspar David Friedrich, ca. 1825–30
    Two Men Contemplating the MoonCaspar David Friedrich, ca. 1825–30Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art