200 years after his birth, this artist with an "unwavering confidence and indomitable tenacity" (Castagnary) remains an indispensable reference in the history of art.
200 years after his birth, this artist with an "unwavering confidence and indomitable tenacity" (Castagnary) remains an indispensable reference in the history of art.
Gustave Courbet was 20 years old when he arrived in Paris in 1839. The Franc-Comtois joined the faculty of law but his passion for painting quickly diverts him from this path, his inspiration nourished by the great masters he sees at the Louvre (Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Titian...) but also his fellow citizen Géricault and Delacroix, the first artists to use large-scale formats to paint episodes of contemporary history.
A true revolution, as at the time large-scale paintings were reserved for historical, biblical, mythological or allegorical subjects.
Gustave Courbet threw himself into the breach that was opened by these two romantic painters, breaking away from the academic tradition.
"Since in all and everywhere I must always make exception to the general rule, I will continue my destiny. »
The first scandal of his career : the painting "A Burial at Ornans" (a the Salon of 1851, a prestigious state-owned exhibition) that depicts a familiar and domestic world without any effect of "glamorisation": an artistic break that gave birth to realism and brought the history of Art to a whole new era.
Refused "due to contempt of religious morality" or bought and destroyed by indignant contemporaries: the works of Gustave Courbet leave no one indifferent, he was the only painter who had the "privilege" of being refused in... the Salon of the Refused!
Note that the painting "Origin of the World", that is today censored on social networks, did not make waves at the time (1866): it was destined to a private purchaser and was completely unknown to the public.
But the artistic scandals are not the only things that troubled the life of the artist: his political commitment brought him to be imprisoned and exiled! A fervent Republican under the Second Empire, he was a leading actor in the Commune of Paris movement (1871), which led him to be wrongfully accused of participating in the destruction of the Vendôme column. Imprisoned and sentenced to a heavy fine, he chose exile in Switzerland where, while painting endlessly to repay his debts, he hoped to obtain amnesty.
He unfortunately did not have the opportunity to return to France, sick and tired he died on the 31st of December 1877 in La-Tour-de-Peilz (Switzerland).
To dive into the world and the beautiful native region of this great artist.
To learn more or to book your visit to the Courbet Museum.
Have a nice trip in Franche Comté !
Valérie from Comme des Français.
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