DOI Heft:
Nr. 99 (June 1901)
DOI Artikel:Mourey, Gabriel: The work of Jean-François Raffaëlli
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.19788#0021
Jean -Fra ncois Raff delli
emphatically no ! And
the same with regard to
our aristocracy, our grand
national sentiments, our
latter-day idols. "Where,
then," demands M. Raf-
faelli, "is the Beauty of
our present condition ? "
And his answer is—" Its
Beauty lies in the indi-
vidual character of men
—of those men who by
slow degrees have gained
their reason, who have
won their liberty, after
hundreds of centuries
of misery and vexation
and pitiful affliction, with
deux vieux canonniers by jean-francois raffaelli the strongest ever having
the upper hand. There
we have the Beautiful! "
nought but the memory of a man who was passion-
ately fond of his art and did portraits in blacklead
As for Realism, " it was an expression as big and
as false as a stage rock," and M. Raffaelli proceeds IKfi'i
to pronounce judgment on Gustave Courbet, IjWSS
whose style he pronounces " too invariably s^&Sih. I J b
classical." "Realism," he continues, "regarded I J}»|
literally, is neither more nor less than the very w^aSK Wml
negation of art." Realist, then, M. Raffaelli will ^^iSsSffifllv
decidedly not be, nor Naturalist, nor Impressionist. jjRS&fp': \
" I dislike Naturalism," he says, " in the first place, fflr ' '^ >'' 'll W
for reasons of colour ; it is too purely scientific for >^wl^«^^W» '*
us." As regards Impressionism, the author of the ^ I
brochure in question admits that "he has been too ^- wfrK 1
much mixed up with its manifestations to be able .j^^^^ME^^^P^iM^
to discuss it without prejudice." What, then, is M. mUmbL \
Raffaelli? He must be the apostle of the "beau ^^^^ ^^m^^^^BB^\
caracteriste," as he terms it. For, in his own bold jjlK^^ ^mHBB
beauty resides in character." By which I ^ 11Hj^TOpayB' '■' fflv
understand him to mean that all artistic _.. * jfll BiaMMH <; SPSjjL
artist of to-day, all the springs of loveliness, ~iK ~T___-. -jllf ~ ^^^^^S^.- -
as our forefathers understood the term, being 2>v // _ ^jH^^^^' '
dry ? At what source will the painter of t'lllBf&siiFS^^^
to-morrow discover the wherewithal to in- ^ffilffiwtfdLSUlf<flill/j|H^fA'ill
spire him ? What is there Beautiful in our
+ 4- 0 t -, at , drawing from by jean-francois raffaelli
democratic state? In our army? No! " types de paris "
In our kings and grandees? Still more (By Permission of MM. Plon, Nourrit et Cie.)
8
emphatically no ! And
the same with regard to
our aristocracy, our grand
national sentiments, our
latter-day idols. "Where,
then," demands M. Raf-
faelli, "is the Beauty of
our present condition ? "
And his answer is—" Its
Beauty lies in the indi-
vidual character of men
—of those men who by
slow degrees have gained
their reason, who have
won their liberty, after
hundreds of centuries
of misery and vexation
and pitiful affliction, with
deux vieux canonniers by jean-francois raffaelli the strongest ever having
the upper hand. There
we have the Beautiful! "
nought but the memory of a man who was passion-
ately fond of his art and did portraits in blacklead
As for Realism, " it was an expression as big and
as false as a stage rock," and M. Raffaelli proceeds IKfi'i
to pronounce judgment on Gustave Courbet, IjWSS
whose style he pronounces " too invariably s^&Sih. I J b
classical." "Realism," he continues, "regarded I J}»|
literally, is neither more nor less than the very w^aSK Wml
negation of art." Realist, then, M. Raffaelli will ^^iSsSffifllv
decidedly not be, nor Naturalist, nor Impressionist. jjRS&fp': \
" I dislike Naturalism," he says, " in the first place, fflr ' '^ >'' 'll W
for reasons of colour ; it is too purely scientific for >^wl^«^^W» '*
us." As regards Impressionism, the author of the ^ I
brochure in question admits that "he has been too ^- wfrK 1
much mixed up with its manifestations to be able .j^^^^ME^^^P^iM^
to discuss it without prejudice." What, then, is M. mUmbL \
Raffaelli? He must be the apostle of the "beau ^^^^ ^^m^^^^BB^\
caracteriste," as he terms it. For, in his own bold jjlK^^ ^mHBB
beauty resides in character." By which I ^ 11Hj^TOpayB' '■' fflv
understand him to mean that all artistic _.. * jfll BiaMMH <; SPSjjL
artist of to-day, all the springs of loveliness, ~iK ~T___-. -jllf ~ ^^^^^S^.- -
as our forefathers understood the term, being 2>v // _ ^jH^^^^' '
dry ? At what source will the painter of t'lllBf&siiFS^^^
to-morrow discover the wherewithal to in- ^ffilffiwtfdLSUlf<flill/j|H^fA'ill
spire him ? What is there Beautiful in our
+ 4- 0 t -, at , drawing from by jean-francois raffaelli
democratic state? In our army? No! " types de paris "
In our kings and grandees? Still more (By Permission of MM. Plon, Nourrit et Cie.)
8