Overview
'There are two ways of spreading light; to be the candle or
the mirror that reflects it' - Edith Wharton
The publication of Charles Baudelaire's essay on the aesthetics
of modernity, Le Peintre de la vie moderne (Painters of Modern
Life) 1863, helped to define the revolution that was taking place
in France. Rather than the historical, biblical, mythic and
allegorical themes revered by Academicians, Baudelaire called on
artists to celebrate everyday life with equal seriousness. Scenes
that reflected the street and café life of Paris; the mill of the
crowd; the glitter of the circus, alongside the mundane but
essential activities of France's working and rural communities
became the focus, very different from dying heroes and maidens
threatened by mythical monsters.
This 'lighter' approach to subject matter was matched by the
remarkable change witnessed in technique in all forms of art. The
Impressionists and Pointillists experimented with the application
of paint, exploring the way in which light affects colour, while
Post-Impressionists and the Fauves developed a non-naturalistic
palette. In the new century, Picasso and Braque introduced radical
means of interpreting line and form. A lighter touch-19th and 20th
century European Art contains favourites from the period, giving us
the opportunity to view them once more before the redevelopment of
the Gallery begins.
Mary Kisler
Mackelvie Curator, International Art