Hey First name / friends!

 

This week is all about one of my favorite new trends – the Rococo Revival! This trend celebrates all things opulent and ultra-feminine. Tap into this trend by creating ornate artwork filled with bows, frills, and florals. 

 

Fun fact: I've long been inspired by luxe French design. In fact, I recently dug up one of my college illustration projects that is totally in line with this current trend. Pink cake and bows back in 2009? I guess you can say I was ahead of my time. 😉

 

 

One of my favorite ways to gather inspiration for styles like this is to get inspired by art of the past! Museums are a great place to fine period-specific references. The best part about getting inspired by paintings you see in a museum? No copyright violation issues if the original artwork is old enough. (70 years past the creator's death is the general rule of thumb.) 

 

Here's an example of inspiration I gathered in a museum in Florence and how I translated it to my own art. Since this painting that I borrowed inspiration from was originally painted in 1414, copyright issues are no problem. 

 

I'm applying this inspo-gathering method with the Rococo Revival trend too! When I was home in Kansas City over the holidays, I went to the Nelson Atkins museum and photographed a ton of old pottery for all the rococo and chinoiserie inspiration!

My 2025 Trend Report offers a combo of two trending motifs – rococo and tea!

 

Grab inspiration from the trend report (or maybe even your local art museum!) and share your rococo inspired artwork on Instagram with the hashtag #CreateWithCatCoq and tag me @catcoq so I can see and share your work.

In January, I challenged my students in The Art of Collections to create collections around a 2025 trend that spoke to them. We had so many amazing submissions. Here are two of the incredible rococo collections. I love how differently these students approached the prompt! 

 

It just goes to show how impactful it is to infuse your own style when designing with trends in mind. You don't have to lose your style to create marketable art.

 

Your unique artistic voice paired with a trending motif is what will make your art irresistible! 

Rosalinde's color palette for this collection is so vibrant and on-trend! I love how she used mockups to display her artwork on products and how balanced the collection feels between spot illustrations and patterns. 

 

 

Michelle did an amazing job with these two colorways of her rococo tea collection! I love how she featured chinoiserie florals, birds, and bows for that extra rococo feel.

 

I can't wait to see your take on the Rococo Revival trend!

 

Have a fabulous week!