Relaxing in the Country
by PATER, Jean Baptiste Joseph, Oil on canvas
The Relaxing in the Country (Les D�lassements de la campagne) is in the tradition of the ‘fêtes galantes’ of Watteau, Pater’s teacher. It has a pendant, Concert Champêtre, also in Valenciennes. Although in the nineteenth century it was claimed that the pair of paintings were painted for Louis XV, there is no real evidence they have any connection to Louis XV.