“The late paintings of Watteau are well known for their nostalgic and often enigmatic renderings of the Italian Commedia dell’arte. But in this ground-breaking study, Georgia Cowart turns to another subject that was no less of a theatrical spectacle for Watteau’s contemporaries: the Sun King himself in his mise-en-scène of Versailles. Employing sensitive readings of many of Watteau’s most iconic paintings, Cowart lets us see––and hear––how the image of Louis XIV in the final years of his decaying absolutist rule haunt these visual tableaus as both theatrical illusion and stylized memory. It is a tour-de-force of visual hermeneutics that will be revelatory to musicologists and art historians alike.”

Thomas Christensen, author of Stories of Tonality in the Age of François-Joseph Fétis

“In After the King, a significant and long-anticipated critical study, Georgia Cowart examines the relationship between the legacy of French culture as shaped by the spectacle of Versailles under Louis XIV and the late paintings (1715–1721) of Antoine Watteau. Drawing on decades of sustained engagement with both the artistic and performative dimensions of absolutist France, Cowart offers a nuanced and compelling account of how artists participate in the construction of cultural memory. Her approach is distinguished by the integration of her extensive scholarship on court spectacle with more than twenty years of research, teaching, and curatorial work devoted to Watteau. The result is a sophisticated and illuminating contribution that advances our understanding of the dialogue between visual and performing arts, while demonstrating the active role of artists in shaping cultural legacy and collective memory.”

Alison Calhoun, Associate Professor of French/Francophone Studies, Indiana University