Art continued to be closely linked to politics at the time;
therefore the aesthetic styles were actually named after the
political periods, namely, the régence style, the Louis
period styles and the Directoire style. When Louis XV came
into power, the monumentality and pompous grandeur of the
Baroque style were gradually replaced by a lighter and more
refined and animated style typical of the Rococo. The greatest
exponent of this new style was J. A. Watteau. Jean François
de Troy, François Boucher and Jean-Honoré Fragonard
painted at a later time, using a distinct decorative and sensuous
style of painting.
Gracefulness and delicacy were the main features in other
fields of art too, such as sculptures, bronze work and porcelains.
As the 18th century drew to a close, the frivolous style of
court art began to grow outmoded and a new artistic movement,
known as the neoclassical style, began taking shape. This
was a more austere, emotionally cool style and began spreading
across Europe.
