ABOUT THIS COLLECTION  
This series of engravings by architect and designer Ennemond Alexandre Petitot were made in 1771. Called “Masquerade à la Grecque” (“Greek Masquerade”), they consist of nine characters—shepherdess and shepherd, the bride and groom, the priestess and monk, the sutler (provisioner to an army camp) and grenadier, and the artist himself, in the costume of an ancient Egyptian architect. Etched and published by Benigno Bossi, the work satirizes the popularity of the “goût grec,” or Greek taste in art and architecture sweeping France at the time. In his brief introduction to the book, Petitot says he extended the goût grec to the portrayal of the human body as a joke (badinage, as he called it) by draping figures in costumes composed of fragments of ancient Greek architectural elements and ornaments.
 
COLLECTION DETAILS
Series title: Greek Masquerade
Series size: 8 artworks
Edition: Limited edition of 1000
Proof of Ownership: Certification on the Ethereum blockchain under the ERC1155 protocol. Each artwork is delivered privately and directly to collectors as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that guarrante proof of ownership.
Format: Pieces consist of PNG files sized 2160x3840 pixels - 150 dpi.
Medium: Etching
Artwork materials:  Prints, etchings
Contract Address: 0x495f947276749ce646f68ac8c248420045cb7b5e
ID: 2749212597480566...
 
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Born in Lyon, Petitot attended the Paris Academy of Architecture, and in 1746 moved to Italy to study at the French Academy of Rome. In 1753 he was named architect to the Bourbon court of Parma. Although he was an exponent of neoclassicism, and changed the face of Parma with his neoclassical buildings, he embraced imaginative interpretations of the style. In two famous books of ornament prints—"Suite de Vases” (1764) and “Greek Masquerade”—Petitot gave full reign to his imagination and ensured his legacy as one of the most original exponents of neoclassicism. In the last plate seen here, he depicts himself humorously as an architect in ancient Egypt, placed in a fantastic still life with a pyramid and a Corinthian column. His parallelogram-shaped hat with bells hanging from both sides is worth special mention, along with the heavy square glasses that one might find in a designer eyewear shop today. 
 
COLLECTION CREDITS
Historical curatorship: HARI - Historical Art Research Institute (HARI Editions)
Artwork: Ennemond Alexandre Petitot, Benigno Bossi
Year of original pulbication: 1771
Post-production: HARI - Historical Art Research Institute (HARI Editions)
Digital art supervisor: Marie-Lou Desmeules
Editorial: Braden Phillips
Historical research: Evangelos Rosios, Braden Phillips
Executive production: Victor Zabrockis
 
RIGHTS OVERVIEW
Source of artwork: Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Underlying work rights: PD Worldwide
Digital copyrights: No Additional Rights