A LOUIS XV BEAUVAIS TAPESTRY

It is believed that François Boucher (d. 1770) started work on the Italian Village Scenes or Fêtes Italiennes in 1734, as the first recorded weaving is in 1736. The designs were almost certainly supplied in two stages and while J. Badin listed no less than fourteen subjects for the series in La Manufacture de Tapisseries de Beauvais, Paris, 1909, E. Standen argues that the series probably only consisted of eight subjects, some of which were split to extend the set ('Fétes Italiennes: Beauvais Tapestries after Boucher in The Metropolitan Museum of Art', Metropolitan Museum Journal, 1977, pp. 110 - 111). The series enjoyed a great success and was woven no less than 13 times and as late as 1762.
The subjects are related to Jean-Antoine Watteau's (d. 1721) Fêtes Vénitiennes, which were engraved by some of Boucher's pupils. Boucher appears to have taken inspiration from them, as several subjects - as well as titles of the scenes from this tapestry series - are related to those of Watteau's engravings. The series is not meant to illustrate a concise story, but rather country scenes that can be combined in whichever way preferred by the patron. It was the first series Boucher completed for Beauvais after returning from his travels in Italy and reflects the Italian baroque painterly tradition.