Jean-Baptiste GREUZE (Tournus 1725 - Paris 1805) Reverie Canvas. 61.5 x 52 cm Provenance : Collection of the Duchess of Penthièvre ; Montebello family collection; Philipp Collection; Count Daupias Collection, Lisbon; Daupias sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit (Me Chevallier), May 17, 1892, no. 23, reproduced; Louis Renault Collection ; Ribes Collection ; Maurice Segoura; Collection de Monsieur D. Bibliography: J. Martin, Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre de Greuze, Paris, 1908, p.46, no. 690. Related work: Truchy sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit (Me Paul Chevallier), May 16, 1895, lot no. 16: Greuze, Rêverie. Study in red chalk (Daupias sale). Large oak and limewood frame, richly carved and gilded, decorated with spandrels of palmettes, reserves with fleurons and acanthus pig tails; on the cushion, a large rocaille cartouche centered with a fleur-de-lys. Louis XV period (one missing piece). H. 98 cm - L. 74 cm The catalog for the exhibition Le cadre et le bois doré à travers les siècles, held at the Galerie Georges Bac in Paris in 1991, illustrates some rare examples of frames decorated with royal attributes, including one with the coat of arms of the Dauphine Marie-Adélaïde de Savoie (page 58) and a second with the coat of arms of France (page 70). Jean-Baptiste Greuze was born in Tournus in 1725. He is best known as a genre painter, but also as a portraitist. Initially trained in Lyon, Greuze moved to Paris in the 1750s, where he joined the studio of Charles- Joseph Natoire's studio. In 1755, he exhibited for the first time at the Salon de Paris, the annual show of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture, and enjoyed immediate success. His style is characterized by sentimental domestic scenes, often with a moral dimension. His works are populated by innocent young girls and children. Alongside his genre scenes, Greuze also established himself as a sought-after portraitist. His portraits are appreciated for their psychological characterization. Jean-Baptiste Greuze has a particular affinity for the depiction of young girls, who are often often at the center of his compositions. These paintings are characterized by gentleness, melancholy, poignant realism and an implicit morality, often associated with innocence and virtue. Greuze's works on young girls can be interpreted in different ways: they reflect the ideals of the time regarding female virtue and innocence, but they also show an interest in the complexity of human emotions, capturing moments of introspection, vulnerability and transition. Rêverie is one of Jean-Baptiste Greuze's most emblematic works. Like many of his paintings, it features a young girl, but this time in a moment of deep introspection. The girl's face is turned towards the viewer, but her gaze is distracted, as if she's lost in thought or dream. In this painting, details are meticulously crafted, from the texture of the skin to the light that delicately illuminates the girl's face, accentuating her melancholy expression. The blurred effect and soft color palette reinforce this contemplative feeling. Daydreaming is a common theme in art, but Greuze treats it with particular delicacy and empathy, capturing a moment of intimacy. The painting is an invitation to question the young girl's thoughts and feelings, prompting the viewer to reflect more broadly on the themes of youth, innocence and the transition to adulthood. Greuze's choice to depict young girls in such introspective moments was in tune with the preoccupations of the 18th century, a time of great social and philosophical upheaval, when the question of the human condition and emotions was central to the arts and literature.