The 19th century saw a great
change in the art world. Until mid century, art schools throughout the world, taught the
academic traditions - with an emphasis on drawing and the human figure. Artist's learned
to paint by studying the early and modern masters, perfecting their technical abilities in
the hopes of one-day entering one of the great ateliers.
In 1863, the minister of fine arts in Paris, Comte Emilien de Nieuwerkerke, implemented
radical reforms that would not only create a great division at the Salon, but would also
turn l'Ecole des Beaux Arts into the most important art school in the Western world. With
these sweeping changes, artists from America, Germany, Spain, etc. flocked to Paris to
study with her artists and attempted to earn admission into l'Ecole. Soon Paris
became what London had always been - the hub of artistic activity.
The Salon of 1863 became a battleground between the old and the new. A number of changes
for entry into the Salon were made that year - most importantly the fact that artists
winning 1st and 2nd class medals at previous Salons did not have to submit their works to
the "Jury". The selection committee, or "Jury" as they were known, was
comprised of 14 members - a small number of governmental appointees and the balance were
exhibiting artists. The artists who sat on the jury were those who had won medals at the
previous exhibitions and they became a powerful group - among them were Bouguereau,
Henner, Cabanel, Gerome and Ernest Meissonier.
Over 5000 works were submitted for exhibition and the 'Jury' selected only 2217 from 988
artists (the previous exhibit featured works from 1289 artists). Among the artists that
were not selected were a number of previous prize winners as well as Manet, Legros, Cals,
Vollon and some of the Barbizon painters. There were many complaints and over the next few
days' word reached Napoleon III. On April 20th, 1863 he decided to see for himself and
traveled to the Palais de l'Industrie (the building on the Champs-Élysées where the
Salon was held) to see the rejected works. He agreed that the jury had been too harsh and
in a bold move decreed that he would allow the public to judge for themselves. In a
separate area in the Palais de l'Industrie another exhibition was set up - the now famous
Salon des Refusés.
The Salon des Refusés was a voluntary exhibition open to those artists whose works were
rejected by the jury of the Salon. A catalog was printed and it opened on May 15. The
problem with the exhibit was that there were many good, as well as bad paintings on
display. Among the more important painters who chose to show their works were
Berne-Bellecoure, Cazin, Harpignies, Cals, Pissarro, Fantin-Latour and Whistler.
Attendance was enormous, though most of the attendees came to gawk and sneer at many of
the works on display - it was said that some 7000 people attended the show in its first
few hours. This exhibit was an important step in creating changes not only at the Salon
(which were temporary), but in the generally accepted course of study - allowing many new
artists to expand on traditional thinking.
Through all these changes, one thing still remained constant in the minds of the Salon
painters - the need for strict academic training. The following exhibition features 14
works by 11 artists who were all great supporters of these academic traditions. Included
are works by William A. Bouguereau (considered one of the most influential academic
artists of the period), Joseph Caraud, Charles E. Delort, Alfred Guillou, Gustave
DeJonghe, Daniel Ridgway Knight, Emile Munier, Leon Perrault, Louis M. de Schryver,
Edouard Toudouze and Fritz Zuber-Buhler. Each of these artists, exhibited at the Paris
Salon throughout his career and some were among the most outspoken of their time. They all
studied in the academic tradition and believed that the key element to becoming a
successful artist was one's ability to create a natural and realistic figure - something
they all excelled in. |
