Design for the Decoration of a Cornice and Dado with Neoclassical Motifs 1755 - 1765

Giuseppe Mannocchi made this design for neoclassical interior decoration with pen and watercolor on paper sometime in the late 1700s. It’s important to understand that this wasn't just fine art, but a pattern to be applied by skilled laborers: painters and plasterers, all working to realize a unified, Neoclassical interior. If we look closely, we can see how the artist has played with materiality through the trompe-l'oeil effect, mimicking marble with washes of color. The geometry speaks to a period infatuated with classical forms, which became fashionable in elite society. This aesthetic then trickled down through pattern books and engravings like this one, influencing domestic interiors of various classes. Consider the sheer amount of human labor required to realize just one of these designs at full scale. That’s why, in the end, this drawing isn't just a pretty picture; it’s a document of social relations made visible through aesthetics and labor.