From Turner, through Calame, John Ferguson Weir, and the last paintings of Gustave Courbet in exile, to Ferdinand Hodler.
Courbet
David’s Neoclassicism brought uniformity and lack of surface texture. Romanticism followed, with garments dissolving into brushstrokes.
A selection of masterpieces which were rejected by the person(s) who commissioned them, or from major exhibitions. Illustrated contents with links.
An unusual but apparently addictive theme for still life paintings: fish, from Chardin’s ray to the performative art of William Merritt Chase.
The jury for the French Pavilion at the Exposition Universelle in 1855 rejected three of Courbet’s paintings, including one of the canonical paintings of the century.
Chillon Castle, Lake Geneva, Éragny Manor, a mansion in New York City, Kelmscott Manor (home of William Morris), Florence Griswold’s home in Old Lyme, CT, and more.
What could a jury possibly find bad or objectionable about Whistler’s finest painting? And after that mistake, how could a second jury get it so wrong too?
Unusual self-portraits by Sofonisba Anguissola, Rembrandt, Artemisia Gentileschi, Courbet, Gérôme and others.
A new series in which painters pit their work against juries of Salons and exhibitions, who then reject paintings which history judges quite differently.
These became popular during the 18th century, revealing models and those painting them, assistants, and many others. They also became complex allegories.