Cleveland Museum of Art

At Least Be Discreet

Augustin de Saint-Aubin

Date

1789

Medium

etching and engraving

Culture

France, 18th century

Department

Prints

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Together these pendant prints depict a couple saying farewell after a romantic rendezvous. Still partially undressed, the woman cautions her lover to keep their tryst a secret. Both the man and the cherub beneath him proudly display a plucked rose as a symbol of sexual triumph. Meanwhile, below the woman, a blindfolded cupid steps toward a precipice, a sign that this lady is about to fall dangerously in love with a rogue. Amusingly, the prints actually depict the artist and his wife, whimsically portraying the mores and fashion of aristocratic society.

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