The
small town of Domrémy-la-Pucelle in eastern France was just a normal medieval
town in the 15th century. No one of importance came from this region and
nothing important happened there. Until the year 1425 during the Hundred Year’s
War. A teenage French girl claimed to have a divine mission to free France from
the oppressive English feudal occupation. Joan of Arc is not just another name
in a history book. She has since become an icon that has transcended time
holding lasting political, religious, and social meaning. Images, paintings,
and sculptures referencing her character and courage has since inspired people,
countries, and kingdoms all around the world. The Maid of Orleans has become a
heroine of legend not just inspiring to her contemporary time of the 1400s, but
also later in the 19th century. Because of this impact on countless
individuals, Joan of Arc has meant a multitude of things in different contexts.
She has symbolized political and military power as well as national identity
for monarchs and governments. Common people and artists have seen her as a
figure of standing up for the oppressed, freedom, and resilience. No matter
what time period or people group, the representation of Joan of Arc is a
lasting impactful symbol in the world.
Peter
Paul Rubens
Joan
of Arc at Prayer
c.
1620
oil
on canvas
181.6
cm x 116.2 cm
North
Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, North Carolina
This
artwork comes from the early 17th century; a time when the royal
courts of Europe were commissioning allegorical, spiritual, and idealistic
history paintings. Peter Paul Rubens, a well-known Flemish artist from this
time, has many of his works commissioned by Marie de'Medici of France and
other monarchs from England and Spain. Joan of Arc at Prayer was found
among his possessions after he died and is now displayed at the North Carolina
Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC. From the context of Ruben’s many other paintings
of this time period, he was commissioned by multiple countries to make
paintings with symbolic themes regarding divine favor, national heritage, and
military power. With this background, it is fascinating that such a simple
peasant girl from France could emit such strong national ideas and feelings.
Hermann
Anton Stilke
Appearance
of Saints Catherine and Michael to Joan of Arc
1843
oil
on canvas
119.5
cm × 83.5 cm
Hermitage
Museum, Saint Petersburg
Appearance
of Saints Catherine and Michael to Joan of Arc was first painted in the
post-Napoleonic era by the German painter Hermann Anton Stilke. He had first
created this work as a part of a triptych for the personal collection of an
English aristocrat. The other two panels showed Joan leading the French army in
battle and her being burden at the stake. This artwork had also been replicated
by Stilke and displayed in Berlin and other locations. One day in 1838,
Stilke’s studio in Dusseldorf was visited by an unexpected visitor; the Grand
Duke Alexander Nikolayevich. He was of the royal Russian family and would
eventually be on the throne in his later years. Nikolayevich was so impressed
and inspired by Stilke’s depiction of the chivalrous maiden, that he wanted to
have the triptych for his own. Since then, Appearance of Saints Catherine
and Michael to Joan of Arc along with the other two parts have been in the
Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. Joan of Arc was not only an exemplary
political symbol cherished by the French, but also by the Russians.
Jean-Auguste-Dominique
Ingres
Joan
of Arc at the Coronation of Charles VII
1854
oil on canvas
240 cm x 178 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris
This
artwork by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres is one of the most famous paintings of
Joan of Arc. It is currently in The Louvre, in Paris. It is quite fitting that
this large portrait representing French nationalism is in the capital. Ingres
painted Joan of Arc at the Coronation of Charles VII with much aid from assistants for a state
commission in honor of Napoleon III. During this season in France, patriotism
and pride for one’s country was all the rage. Love for national heroes such as
the Young Maid of Orleans shaped the culture of the 19th century. Paintings of
Joan of Arc were not merely symbolic or historical, they represented
ideological truths about the strength, resilience, and power of France. The
iconography of Joan began to be realized as not just a French heroine, but as
an image of social and political influence. Joan stood as a beacon of truth,
justice, and freedom for those oppressed, a sentiment that would resonate with
many cultures over the centuries.
Jules
Bastien-Lepage
Joan
of Arc
1879
oil
on canvas
100"
x 110"
Metropolitan
Museum of Art, New York City
Joan
of Arc is a painting of Jules Bastien-Lepage, a 19th century realist painter from the region between east France and Germany called
Alscase-Lorainne. This area of Europe had been fought over between France and
Germany for centuries. Interestingly, this area in France is historically where
Joan of Arc was from. Bastien-Lepage’s work was created a few years after the
end of the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871). This work of Joan of Arc was
one of many statements of French nationalism to subvert Germany’s role in that
time of turmoil. Germany traumatized French citizens, when it permanently
annexed almost all eastern France. The Alscase-Lorainne region was not regained
by France until after World War I. This painting has since been moved to the
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
Emmanuel
Frémiet
Joan
of Arc
1874
gilded
bronze
400
cm
Displayed
in the Place des Pyramides, Paris
This
statue was made in Paris during the period of Napoleon III, when the French
suffered an incredible loss of morale after their humiliating defeat in the
Franco-Prussian war. As a result of this sentiment, a surge in yearning for
purpose and national identity was felt across France. Joan of Arc was the
perfect candidate to inspire and uplift the people of France. Statues and
paintings went up everywhere in France to remember their strength and heritage
ignited by the teenage girl from Lorraine. This iconography of Joan of Arc has
since transcended her contemporary time period and country to impact people and
cultures around the world. In addition to being in Paris, this statue by
Frémiet has been copied and displayed in multiple locations world-wide such as
Nancy, France, New Orleans Louisiana, Philadelphia Pennsylvania, Portland,
Oregon, and Melbourne, Australia. These more modern statues still hold a
political and social meaning to their local people and cultures of eternal
heroism, strong identity, and endurance in time of hardship.
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