The Judgment of Paris--Book Thoughts

I've just finished The Judgment of Paris, by Ross King. A great majority of the book was set around the U.S. Civil War time. Interesting to think about what some of the rest of the world was doing while we were fighting each other.

Perhaps the most mentioned artist is one we seldom, if ever, hear about. The most famous, of his time, receiving national awards for his work, Meissonier. Meissonier, a contemporary of Manet, Monet, Degas, Renoir and Cobert produced a tremendous amount of work. He particularly was fastidious about research when accomplishing his historical works. Unfortunately, unlike Manet, who produced the scandalous painting "Olympia" and was instrumental in inaugurating the Impressionist movement, (a term of derision when first passing the art critics lips), Meissonier even as late as the 1980's fell from favor quickly after his death. In fact, a statue of him was removed from the Louvre and ended up near his grave.

Granted, Meissonier was arrogant, critical, and generally not a very pleasant person, but then artists were frequently temperamental. My favorite story in the book was when he put together a scale model of a battle and since it occurred in winter, used sugar to represent snow. The bees, however, drove him to use a different item for the snow. He then used flour. The mice and rats were in heaven and Meissonier moved his model out to his garden. This full scale model included an attempt to use his son to represent Napoleon, but the hat kept falling off and the uniform didn't fit quite right, so Meissonier ended up posing himself. The poor servants had a great deal of work to do keeping the model the way he wanted. Finally, it snowed. Meissonier almost froze trying to paint outdoors in the snow, but the picture was as authentic as he could make it.

Manet, had in the meantime, seemed to be trying to use shock to get his art noticed. My favorite story involving him is his picture with blue angels and pink loincloth. I'm sure the church really appreciated his use of artistic license there.

It does seem unfair that with the accolades Meissonier received while alive, that he was villainized after death and Manet, whose art was criticized while alive, received his accolades after his death. I guess life can be unfair and the money Manet's art received after death could not be spent by him, yet Meissonier got to spend his money while alive. Meissonier lived to be 76, and Manet only 51.

The Impressionist Movement became a significant influence on the modern art scene and is in fact, one of my favorite styles. The Muse d' Orsay in Paris is the place to go if one desires to see some of the best of the best in Impressionism. The Met in New York City has a fair collection also.

Art tells the story of our time. It serves as a storyboard of the current culture and if a person studies it intently they can see/hear the development of where we have been as opposed to where we are now. Art only speaks to those who listen. Please. Stop. And Listen. You may not particularly like what it is saying, but it must be appreciated for the voice it uses.