1800s France was a place of great social unrest, and political upheaval. In a short period of history the French public was united in the revolutionary aspirations of overthrowing the monarchical social order. The French revolution remains today as a key historical example of civil revolution and the power of the masses. There are few places where the feelings and thoughts of revolutionaries are captured better than in paintings made in the time and place of revolution. During the French revolution many artworks were made to glorify the revolution and its ideas in order to gain more fervent support of the cause. Perhaps most notably Jacques Louis David had developed a large catalog of historical paintings during this time, all about the revolution itself and about historical events which mirrors the struggles and values of the French Revolution. Throughout the revolution fairly normal individuals, like David, were taking places of power among revolutionaries to help manage the revolution and its people. Individuals from all walks of life were being encouraged and recruited to join the cause of the revolution, for the greater good of the French nation and its people. With this came paintings which either commemorated those who did sacrifice or encouraged people to choose the revolutionary cause over their individual life. Central to all these revolutionary paintings is the theme of sacrificing ones-self for an ideal.
Jacques Louis David, Death of Socrates, 1787, Oil on canvas, 51 x 77 1/4 in. (129.5 x 196.2 cm), The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, United States, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/436105
David’s Death of Socrates depicts the famous Greek philosopher Socrates being executed after being declared guilty by Athenian courts for the crime of impiety. Refusing to renounce his beliefs, he willingly drinks the deadly hemlock cup and dies for his ideas. Socrates followers, who largely make up the background of the painting, are seen grieving and in disarray, unable to come to terms with the government's act of injustice. Yet, even in his last moments Socrates is seen as defiant, being in a strong and active position in the center of the piece. David’s piece remembers Socrates as a prime example of someone powerfully standing up to unjust authority even in their death.
Jacques Louis David, Oath of Horatii, 1784-1785, Oil on Canvas, 10 7/16 × 14 3/4 in. (26.5 × 37.5 cm), The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, United States, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/775524
David’s Oath of Horatii depicts a Roman legend where the cities of Rome and Alba Longa are in heated dispute, and decide to settle it not by war, but by sending three fighters from either side to represent their cities in a fight to the death. The three men on the left are brothers and the man in the center is their father. They stand confident, ready to carry out their duty for their city even if it costs their lives. In the legend two brothers die, leaving one to defeat the 3 opposing fighters. The lone brother wins, defending his city solo, losing his brothers, and at the risk of his own life. All brothers are celebrated for being willing to sacrifice themselves to represent their people and values.
Jacques Louis David, The Death of Marat, 1793, Oil on canvas, 64.9 x 50.3 in. (165 x 128 cm), Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels, Belgium, accessed November 29, 2023, https://fine-arts-museum.be/en/exhibitions/the-death-of-marat
David’s Death of Marat shows the French revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat assassinated in his bath tub. This is a less glorified picture of what a revolution looks like, showing the grim price many pay for social change. The vulnerability of Marat in this painting, unclothed, in a bathtub, quill in hand, helps communicate his innocence, or the purity in his actions. David communicates the bleak nature of revolution, but the purity, or good purpose behind it and its leaders. While Marat died, he did for a good cause, and is remembered for his sacrifice for the good of the people.
Jacques Louis David, Leonidas at Thermopylae, 1814, Oil on canvas, 12.96 ft × 17.42 ft (395 cm × 531 cm), The Louvre, Paris, France, accessed December 1, 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonidas_at_Thermopylae#/media/File:Le%C3%B3nidas_en_las_Term%C3%B3pilas,_por_Jacques-Louis_David.jpg
David’s Leonidas at Thermopylae, was made following the completion of the revolution, when the new French empire was defending itself from European powers. While being made to represent the new French power, it still employs the same idea David used throughout his revolutionary paintings. The familiar story of the 300 Spartans defending a tight pass at Thermopylae for the sake of the greater Greek army strongly echoes the revolutionary idea of sacrificing oneself for a greater purpose. In the painting, Leonidas stands confident in the center, while many of his men are behind him facing the large Persian army spanning a far distance.
Eugene Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People, 1830, Oil on canvas, 102.3 in. x 10.6 ft. (260 x 325 cm.), The Louvre, Paris, France, accessed November 29, 2023, https://fineartamerica.com/featured/6-liberty-leading-the-people-eugene-delacroix.html
Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People depicts a personified “liberty” leading the pack of unorganized French civilians to battle. Liberty proudly holds the French tricolor flag above her head as she leads the citizens over a pile of dead bodies, showcasing the brutal nature of the revolution. The painting directly uses the idea of Liberty as a uniting figure for the revolutionary forces. The painting directly shows people who are putting their lives on the line to fight for an idea.
Francisco Goya, Third of May, 1814, Oil on canvas, 106 x 137 in. (268 x 347 cm.), Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain, Accessed November 30, 2023,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Third_of_May_1808#/media/File:El_Tres_de_Mayo,_by_Francisco_de_Goya,_from_Prado_thin_black_margin.jpg
Goya’s Third of May depicts not an event from the French revolution, but rather an event which resulted from the French revolution. After Napoleon came to power in France his armies were sent to Spain to replace the existing Spanish monarch. Goya’s painting commemorates the people who valiantly opposed the occupying French forces even when the odds were heavily against them. Presumably every Spanish opposition dies in this painting, but they tried to defend Spain from the threat of foreign powers. Goya celebrates those who sacrifice themselves for Spanish rule and the sake of the Spanish nation.
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