Three Cupids Playing Instruments

Hendrik Willem Schweickhardt (1746-1797) was a German painter who came to The Hague in 1775, where he was the pupil of Hieronymus Lapis (active 1758-1788). In 1885 he moved to London where he spent the rest of his life. He was the teacher of Pieter Gaal (1770-1819), Andrea Scacciati II (1725-1771) and of his own daughter Katharina Wilhelmina Schweickhardt (1776-1830).

This grisaille painting showing three cupids leaning over clouds and playing instruments could illustrates an allegory of hearing, a compositional idea that Schweickhardt used several times in his production of decorative panels. The artist especially favoured children and putti’s subject matters for these works as their subjects are purely decorative and recall an idyllic Arcadian world, a trend that also spread in French literature of the late 18th century. This painting forms a pair with 559-1882.