Gabriel de Saint-Aubin, born in 1724, never left his native Paris. He studied at the prestigious Royal Academy but failed to win the coveted Prix de Rome. He is often said to have reacted to this disappointment by throwing aside all hopes of a traditional artistic career and hastening out into the thoroughfares of Paris to sketch everything in sight, living an errant, bohemian existence and succumbing increasingly to an obsession with drawing. But despite his personal eccentricities he was employed as an illustrator all his life.

Gabriel de Saint-Aubin, born in 1724, never left his native Paris. He studied at the prestigious Royal Academy but failed to win the coveted Prix de Rome. He is often said to have reacted to this disappointment by throwing aside all hopes of a traditional artistic career and hastening out into the thoroughfares of Paris to sketch everything in sight, living an errant, bohemian existence and succumbing increasingly to an obsession with drawing. But despite his personal eccentricities he was employed as an illustrator all his life.

Catalog of an exhibition held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, October 1, 2013-January 5, 2014.

"Accompanying an exhibition in honor of Philippe de Montebello, Director Emeritus of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, this engaging book examines the influence of music and theater on the art of Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684-1721). Fifteen major paintings and a number of drawings by Watteau that illustrate the connections between painting and the performing arts in Paris are explored. In addition, drawings and prints by other 18th-century artists featuring musical or theatrical subjects and objects and musical instruments are included."--Publisher description.