Landscape with a Water Mill (1740)
François Boucher
French, 1703-1770
Oil on canvas

French 18th-century painters would often allude to the work of their 17th-century predecessors. Here, Boucher refers to landscapes by the French classical painter Claude Lorrain, Mill on the Tiber. Both paintings feature a water mill balanced by trees on the opposite side of the composition. Furthermore, in this landscape Boucher includes a temple in the distance that is based on the Temple of the Sybil at Tivoli, another favorite classical Claudian motif. Compared to his 17th-century predecessor, Boucher applies paint more thickly, in lighter strokes, resulting in a lush, decorative density typical of the Rococo.

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