In the last decade of the seventeenth century, when Claude III Audran had completed his training and sought to establish himself professionally, he chose the arabesque as his mode of ornamental expression. This choice may have been suggested by his mentor or derived from other influences, but the definitive reason for his selection remains unknown. Audran joined a long tradition advanced by French artists, namely the use of decorative motifs that originated from the ancient Roman grotesque. He became especially well known for the facility with which he revitalized the ornamental vocabulary by introducing into it elements from popular culture. To elucidate Audran's achievement, this chapter begins with a brief history of the grotesque when it reached France. Use of the decorative motif spread through trade, such as decorative metalwork or the print media. A seminal moment occurred when François I enticed artists from Italy to come and work at Fontainebleau.

The original term “grotesque” was applied to the painted decorations that covered the walls and ceilings of the Domus Aurea or “Golden House” (64–68 CE), a large villa built in ancient Rome for Emperor Nero (r. 54–68 CE). After the emperor's death, the house was filled in with earth, and, when excavated some 1,400 years later, in the late fifteenth century, its rooms were mistaken for underground chambers or grottoes.