Naturalism was a phenomenon of Northern Europe, centred in Paris with Jules Bastien-Lepage as its high priest. Except here it is in the Italian island of Sicily, in the backstreets of Catania.
Bastien-Lepage
Eight of Cabanel’s most precocious and brilliant pupils. Only one won the Prix de Rome, and the others went on to develop Naturalist art. Was Cabanel the father of this new movement?
A precocious painter who was a favourite of Napoleon III, he taught at the École des Beaux-Arts for 25 years. Many of his students became Naturalists. Coincidence? Here’s his story and work.
Behind his traditional narrative paintings are his views on the Third Republic, the slaughter of the Paris communards in 1871, and the Dreyfus affair.
As an avid photographer, how did he use his many photographs in his paintings? Was he just a copyist?
During his career, over 300 of his paintings were shown in the Salon, many being bought by the state for public collections. Yet he has all but vanished since.
More paintings of surprise, by Gericault, Gérôme, Regnault, Bastien-Lepage, Morelli, and others.
Known only now for his poster for Tuborg beer, he was a Naturalist not afraid to campaign with his paintings against social injustice.
The nineteenth century saw rising awareness of social issues, which introduced novel themes into painting. Works by Murillo, Mulready, Bastien-Lepage and others.
Works from 1880, in which his style became looser and possibly more Impressionist. Or was he still a Naturalist?
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