Disney's Frozen has many nods to art history. One of the cheekiest art history references in Disney’s Frozen is during the song “For the First Time in Forever,” when Anna joyfully moves through the castle. She's excited to finally be able to hang out with other people rather than be cooped up in her castle—I'd be thrilled too, among other things.
In one memorable moment, she bounces on a couch and strikes a pose reminiscent of a famous painting replicated in the background: Jean-Honoré Fragonard’s The Swing (1767–68).
While the scene is playful and lighthearted, the painting it references has a risqué twist that makes this nod all the more intriguing. I mean, this IS a movie marketed to kids, after all, so why adapt a painting with erotic overtones?
Let's find out!
Jean-Honoré Fragonard’s The Swing
Jean-Honoré Fragonard’s The Swing is one of France's most iconic paintings of the Rococo era. The Rococo style flourished in the 18th century and is known for its ornate, whimsical, and often sensual themes. The Swing epitomizes these characteristics with its lush garden setting, soft pastel colors, and playful composition.
In the painting, a young woman in a billowing pink dress is shown mid-swing, her shoe flying off her foot as an older man pushes her. Meanwhile, her lover hides in the bushes below, gazing up at her. The composition is lively and filled with movement, but it also carries a suggestive undertone—her exposed legs and the lover’s hidden position hint at a secret romantic rendezvous. It's intended to be erotic and playful, which is not necessarily the combination you might expect in a Disney movie. I expect they were leaning more into the playful element—and Fragonard's larger body of work definitely suggests he was fond of playful paintings. [1]
But why risk the risqué?
Disney loves the Rococo style
It turns out Disney LOVES the Rococo style. Frozen is not the only film to borrow from Rococo art. Have you seen Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast? Well, there is loads of Rococo art there, too. Walt Disney himself enjoyed different forms of Rococo art and collected it. This is undoubtedly a factor as to why so many Disney films borrowed from it over the years.
So, yeah, Disney loves the Rococo style. I will expand on this in separate posts because it is worth exploring in more detail the reasons behind this choice.
Why This Reference in Frozen?
As noted earlier, in Frozen, the nod to Fragonard’s The Swing occurs during Anna’s song “For the First Time in Forever,” where she expresses her excitement about finally leaving the castle and meeting people after years of isolation. The reference is fitting for several reasons:
Desire for Love: Like the young woman in The Swing, Anna is filled with romantic longing. Her desire to find love and experience life beyond the castle mirrors Fragonard's painting's playful, flirtatious mood. This poor girl has been locked away for years with no one to play with.
Rococo Whimsy: The Rococo era was known for its lighthearted, carefree spirit (at least in art), which aligns perfectly with Anna’s exuberant personality in this scene. The reference adds a layer of playful sophistication for viewers familiar with art history—though admittedly that playful sophistication also has charged eroticism and isn't what I'd call kid-friendly.
Visual Parallels: Anna’s billowing dress and carefree pose directly echo the central figure in The Swing. By incorporating this visual parallel, Disney animators cleverly link Anna’s story to a well-known art historical painting and moment. Disney animators and Imagineers adore using art historical references, both overly and subtly, so it's not surprising that they'd make this visual parallel. They also really love using The Swing in particular.
A Fun Art History Easter Egg (and Tangled’s and Beauty and The Beast's Connection)
Interestingly, this isn’t the only time Disney artists have looked specifically to Fragonard’s The Swing for inspiration. Early concept art for Tangled shows that animators initially wanted to pose Rapunzel similarly, with her long hair cascading down like the foliage in the original painting. While this idea didn’t make it into the final film, it’s another example of Disney’s love for weaving art history into its storytelling.
It's important, to me at least, to think about how two repressed young women who have not known much human contact or romantic love would be modeled on The Swing. The painting is likely used because of that risqué, erotic element—the idea of sensual romantic love that even as young women they desire.
Early concept art for Beauty and the Beast also borrowed from Fragonar's The Swing. The very idea seems antithetical to Belle's personality, as some brave and brash and independent. This early concept art also shows that animators wanted to have Belle in a powdered wig, so I think we can all agree that they made the right choices to abandon both Belle on a swing and the wig.
Final Thoughts: Disney's Frozen nods to art history
Disney’s Frozen is filled with moments of visual brilliance (love 'em or hate 'em), and the reference to Fragonard’s The Swing during Anna’s song is a perfect example of how Disney blends art history with modern storytelling. By nodding to one of the most famous—and playful—paintings of the Rococo era, the film adds depth and charm to Anna’s character arc.
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Notes
[1] See Jennifer Milam, Fragonard's Playful Paintings: Visual Games in Rococo Art (Manchester University Press, 2006).
CITE THIS PAGE: Kilroy-Ewbank, Dr. Lauren. "Anna, The Swing, and Rococo Art: Disney's Frozen Nods to Art History." lkilroyewbank.com <Insert date you accessed> https://www.lkilroyewbank.com/post//the-swing-disney-frozen-nods-to-art-history.
Learn more
Fragonard to Frozen: how French art inspired Disney animators, https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/feb/15/fragonard-to-frozen-how-french-art-inspired-disney-animators
Read more about Rococo furniture from The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Heilbrunn Timeline
Here is an excellent interview with the curator of Inspiring Walt Disney about the Rococo and the (Disney) Renaissance
If you are looking for a short introduction to the Rococo style that is deeper than what I've written here (before I write something!), I like this short primer from the Victoria and Albert Museum
Wolf Burchard, Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts (Met Publications, 2021).
Melissa Lee Hyde, Making Up the Rococo: François Boucher and His Critics (Getty Publications, 2006).
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