Brief Biography-François Boucher was born in Paris. Nicolas, his father, was a painter and sold prints, illustrations, and artists’ materials in his shop in the Rue de la Verrerie, where he nurtured his son’s talent for painting at an early age. When he was seventeen, he began studying in the studio of the renowned artist François Lemoyne. The style of Lemoyne’s images was a more decorative style of Baroque which inspired Boucher to develop the Rococo style. He quickly found work with the engraver Jean Francois Cars and came to the attention of Jean Antoine Watteau, who hired him to do engravings of his drawings.
In 1727, he went to Italy with Carle van Loo on an educational tour that he later stated he went on more out of curiosity than interest in Italy.
When he returned to Paris, he gained admittance to the Academy in 1733, and in that year, he married Marie-Jeanne Buseau. His wife was to become his model for characters in numerous paintings.
In 1735, he had his first royal commission and worked for a tapestry factory led by Jean-Baptiste Oudry. By this time, royal commissions were numerous, and Madame de Pompadour kept him busy with various tasks, from painting her bedroom to doing a panel in her chapel.
In 1752, he had a studio in the Louvre where he had assistants such as Jean-Honore Fragonard and the renowned Jacques-Louis David for a brief period. In later years, he took over the positions of Kings Painter and Directorship of the Academy. In the late 1760s, he travelled to Holland while weak, leading to his death in 1770.