The Embarkation for Cythera

The Embarkation for Cythera (1717) by Antoine Watteau. Its palette is led by pale grey (#b6c7ce, 26%) and dark golden umber (#5b4d2a, 23%), with accents of dark brown and putty. Overall the canvas is light, moderately saturated and warm.

Color reading

Brown and gray cover nearly three-quarters of the canvas. Its most vivid color, amber #9F8047, takes up 12% of it.

Palette

#b6c7ce MG 212 pale grey 25.9% of canvas
#5b4d2a MG 185 dark golden umber 23.4% of canvas
#795c2c MG 184 umber 19.2% of canvas
#9f8047 MG 034 amber 12.3% of canvas
#3a2c19 MG 169 dark brown 10.4% of canvas
#8c9682 MG 173 putty 8.8% of canvas

Color families

Brown 59%, Gray 13%, White 8%, Green 8%, Yellow 7%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.58
Contrast: 0.54
Vividness: 0.049
Warmth: +0.89
Complexity: 145 cells
Hue range: 0.51
Focus: 0.00

Composition

67% of the visual weight is in the right half, 62% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.00 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 24% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 31% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1717
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 129.0 × 194.0 cm
Genre: Fête galante
Collection: Department of Paintings of the Louvre

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More by Antoine Watteau

Pierrot, 1718
The Shop Sign of Gersaint, 1720