It is known under the name of Rococó to the artistic style that reigned in some European countries in the 18th century, just before the Old Regime fell under revolutionary pressure. The Rococo was a clear representative of the luxurious and opulent life of European royalty not only because it was present in all its artistic expressions, but because he himself, with his recharge of details and curves, embodied the desire of the wealthiest classes to demonstrate their power and its importance over other social groups.
The Rococo was especially fruitful in France, a country in which it had an excellent diffusion as it was recognized as an extremely refined, delicate and luxurious style. For many specialists, the Rococo was a somewhat more superficial evolution of the Baroque, an artistic style in which the recharge of details and elements was already present. It was the Rococo style that would take the idea of detail and recharge to the maximum, making this visible in paintings, sculptures, architectural designs and even in music. At the same time, during the period of greatest diffusion of Rococo (approximately between 1730 and 1780), furniture and interior decoration would increase, both phenomena that knew how to take advantage of the assumptions of the style in question very well.
For the Rococo, a return to nature was essential, but not an unbridled and extremely suffering nature (as the Baroque could represent in some cases), but a nature that was now delicate, soft and luxurious, in perfect synchronization with the human presence. . So much so that a large part of the architectural and furniture representations included numerous details that were copies of the shapes of leaves or plants, with all their curves and counter-curves. In many ways, the decorative recharge on architectural structures advanced in such a way that what mattered was no longer the construction but the way in which it was later decorated.
Both the painting and the architecture, the decoration and the furniture would then be clear representatives of a relaxed lifestyle, eager to access luxury and to be in contact with nature, joy and fun. Among the most important and representative artists of the Rococo we find Watteau, Fragonard, Boucher, Chardin or Gainsborough. One of the most significant constructions for the Rococo is without a doubt the impressive Palace of Versailles in France.
