Mezzetin
ca. 1718–20 · Oil on canvas
Dimensions 21 3/4 x 17 in. (55.2 x 43.2 cm)
Collection: Metropolitan Museum of Art
Credit Munsey Fund, 1934
Mezzetin, a stock comic character of the Italian commedia dell'arte, became an established performer on the Paris stage. Various players were engraved in his costume, which by about 1680 comprised a jacket and knee-britches, a floppy hat, a ruff, and a short cape. Mezzetin was by turns interfering, devious, and lovelorn, but not languorous. His head and his large, angular hands are extraordinarily expressive.
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About this artwork
Mezzetin (ca. 1718–20) by Jean Antoine Watteau, oil on canvas, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection.
About Jean Antoine Watteau
Jean-Antoine Watteau; baptised October 10, 1684 – died July 18, 1721),commonly referred to as Antoine Watteau, was a French painter whose brief career spurred the revival of interest in colour and movement, as seen in the tradition of Correggio and Rubens.
More by Jean Antoine Watteau
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