This catalogue accompanies an exhibition at The Courtauld Gallery, which is the first dedicated to the graphic oeuvre of Antoine Caron (1521-1599). Bringing together a core group of drawings centred around the figures and deeds of the French Royal family, the Valois, this display highlights the role played by Catherine de' Medici (1519-1589). Featuring the Valois series, a set of drawings here reunited for the first time, the display showcases the way in which the powerful and influential Catherine promoted the success of her regency and future of her progeny by delivering a series of lavish courtly events that were meant to enhance the power and diplomacy of her family. The drawings represent jousts, tournaments, festivals and a mock naval battle, events that occurred at the French court during the reigns of Catherine's sons Charles IX and Henri III. Preparatory designs for a group of tapestries, these visual documents relate to actual events that were organised by the court, some of which took place at the French castles of Anet, Palace of Fontainebleau, Bayonne and at the Tuileries Gardens in Paris. Minutely designed, they thus allow a reconstruction of the visual testimony of those events, as they were documented in written contemporary sources.

An illustrated exploration of the largely unpublished collection of eighteenth-century French drawings, albums, and sketchbooks at the Bibliotheque nationale de France Promenades on Paper explores the largely unmined collection of eighteenth-century drawings held in the Department of Prints and Photography of the Bibliotheque nationale de France. Among the 50 featured artists are some of France's most celebrated eighteenth-century practitioners, including Madeleine Basseporte (1701-1780), Francois Boucher (1703-1770), Gabriel de Saint Aubin (1724-1780), and Jean-Honore Fragonard (1732-1806), alongside architects, designers, and printmakers. Scattered across the institution's vast reserves, these drawings have until now served primarily documentary purposes. In this book, leading international scholars introduce more than 80 drawings, albums, and sketchbooks-many published here for the first time-and reveal how artists used drawing to record, critique, and try to improve the world around them. Distributed for the Clark Art Institute Exhibition Schedule: Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, MA (December 17, 2022-March 12, 2023) Musee des Beaux-Arts de Tours (May 12-August 28, 2023)