Fricasso

Fricasso, depicted in this panel from De Clermont's Lansdowne House series of 1742, is one of the less internationally known commedia dell'arte character types — the name 'Fricasso' suggests noise and confusion, typical of the zanni characters whose energy drove commedia plots. De Clermont documented character types that would be unfamiliar to English viewers without knowledge of the Italian theatrical tradition's full range, suggesting that the Lansdowne House commission served as much as an educational program as a decorative one. The series' comprehensiveness reflected the English Enlightenment's characteristic desire to catalogue and systematize cultural knowledge, including popular theatrical forms.

The single figure is rendered with theatrical gesture and clear, decorative line characteristic of De Clermont's ornamental style. The costume is depicted in bright, flat colors with careful attention to the identifying details of the character type, suitable for viewing at the scale of room decoration.