The fictional Marcus Sextus, Napoleon pardoning the rebels of Cairo, and Narcissus where he shouldn’t be: disinformation in history painting.
Prix de Rome
The Prix de Rome changed in the 19th century. Its subjects became more obscure, and its successes few and far between.
Founded around 1666, the Prix de Rome was an annual contest for narrative painting. First prize was study at the French Academy in Rome.
Niobe had seven sons and seven daughters, which must have made her better than Latona, who only had 2 children. Snag was, there were Apollo and Diana.
Also a grim story of suicidal disembowelling, and a propaganda painting for Napoleon.
How the quest to reform history painting only confirms its traditional narrative tools.
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