Academic Art

Before the Avant-Garde: Academic Art in the 19th Century: 

Before the Avant-Garde: Academic Art in the 19th Century The Academy, Orientalism & the Male Gaze (Above: J.A.D. Ingres , La Grande Odalisque , 1814)

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Two Odalisque images: J.A.D. Ingres , La Grande Odalisque (an academic painting from 1814) & Lalla Essaydi’s contemporary photographic version

“In my art, I wish to present myself through multiple lenses: as artist, as Moroccan, as Saudi, as traditionalist, as Liberal, as Muslim. In short, I invite the viewer to resist stereotypes.” Lalla Essaydi: 

“In my art, I wish to present myself through multiple lenses: as artist, as Moroccan, as Saudi, as traditionalist, as Liberal, as Muslim. In short, I invite the viewer to resist stereotypes.” Lalla Essaydi

How did stereotypes--like the stereotypes in Ingres’ painting of a harem girl--become part of art production? To answer that, we need to review the history of the French Royal Academy of Fine Arts.: 

How did stereotypes--like the stereotypes in Ingres’ painting of a harem girl--become part of art production? To answer that, we need to review the history of the French Royal Academy of Fine Arts .

Louis XIV, the most powerful absolute monarch of the Baroque, famously asserted, “L’etat est moi!” (The state is me.. I am France!) Painted here in 1700 by Hyacinthe Rigaud.: 

Louis XIV, the most powerful absolute monarch of the Baroque, famously asserted, “L’etat est moi!” (The state is me.. I am France!) Painted here in 1700 by Hyacinthe Rigaud.

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Louis XIV became king at age 4 & reigned for 72 years, outliving his all of his sons & some of his grandsons. For 54 of those years, he personally controlled French government. His rule is an extreme example of absolutism . During his reign, the nation of France was stabilized politically & culturally. It became one of the strongest powers in Europe . It also became the art center of Western Europe, a role it usurped from Baroque-era Rome & maintained until the mid-20th century.

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Instead of glorifying God, as Italians had during the Renaissance & Baroque periods, the French glorified their king. One of the primary ways they did this was with ART . Louis XIV founded the French Royal Academy of Fine Arts in1648. He established policy & appointed all male directors. Under Louis, the government oversaw the art curriculum as well as the annual exhibitions, which took place in a room or “salon” of the Louvre Palace in Paris. Like the Catholic Church before him, Louis XIV very deliberately used art as propaganda. .

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Louis XIV used paintings like this one as propaganda. (Remember, the word “propaganda” originated with the Counter Reformation Catholic Church, when the Church used art to propagate or spread the faith.) Louis shifted the mythic base from God to king, in order to justify his reign as divinely ordained. He used art & the Academy to control his image. Here his minister Colbert presents the directors of the Academy of Science. This image supports the idea that the king was a great scholar & intellectual.

In the careful control of his image, Louis XIV was much like contemporary celebrities, who have PR firms to help control their public images.: 

In the careful control of his image, Louis XIV was much like contemporary celebrities, who have PR firms to help control their public images.

A century later, Napoleon continued the use of art as propaganda. Academic artist Jacques Louis David’s Napoleon Crossing the Alps, 1800-01: 

A century later, Napoleon continued the use of art as propaganda. Academic artist Jacques Louis David’s Napoleon Crossing the Alps, 1800-01 An overtly propagandistic painting. Napoleon looks heroic & larger than life In actuality, Napoleon crossed the Alps on a donkey in the middle of a thunderstorm.

Jacques Louis David’s 1800-01 Napoleon Crossing the Alps & Paul Delaroche’s 1850 version: David’s version flattered Napoleon; the later version was much more realistic.: 

Jacques Louis David’s 1800-01 Napoleon Crossing the Alps & Paul Delaroche’s 1850 version: David’s version flattered Napoleon; the later version was much more realistic.

Another image of Napoleonic warfare is: Francisco de Goya’s May 2, 1808 (painted 1814).: 

Another image of Napoleonic warfare is: Francisco de Goya’s May 2, 1808 (painted 1814).

Francisco de Goya’s The Third of May, 1808 (1814).: 

Francisco de Goya’s The Third of May, 1808 (1814).

Two views of warfare: Heroes Vs. Victims David’s Napoleon Crossing the Alps, 1800-01 & Goya’s The Third of May, 1808 from 1814: 

Two views of warfare: Heroes Vs. Victims David’s Napoleon Crossing the Alps, 1800-01 & Goya’s The Third of May, 1808 from 1814

David’s Coronation of Napoleon, 1807 Also overtly propagandistic: Napoleon’s mother, who refused to attend, is painted in anyway—at Napoleon’s insistence.: 

David’s Coronation of Napoleon , 1807 Also overtly propagandistic: Napoleon’s mother, who refused to attend, is painted in anyway—at Napoleon’s insistence.

Jean Auguste Dominique INGRES (1780-1867) J.L. David’s student at the Academy. Ingres’ goal was to develop his art career & become financially successful. In order to do this, he had to compete & win at Salon exhibitions.: 

Jean Auguste Dominique INGRES (1780-1867) J.L. David’s student at the Academy. Ingres’ goal was to develop his art career & become financially successful. In order to do this, he had to compete & win at Salon exhibitions.

Ingres’ Achilles Receiving the Messengers of Agamemnon (1801) won the Prix de Rome: 

Ingres’ Achilles Receiving the Messengers of Agamemnon ( 1801) won the Prix de Rome

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Ingres, Jupiter & Thetis , 1811 CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY

Ingres also flattered Napoleon in propagandistic imagery. HISTORY PAINTING Salon of 1806.: 

Ingres also flattered Napoleon in propagandistic imagery. HISTORY PAINTING Salon of 1806.

Ingres’ Vow of Louis XIII was exhibited in the Salon of 1824: 

Ingres’ Vow of Louis XIII was exhibited in the Salon of 1824 RELIGIOUS PAINTING

Salon of 1824: with so many paintings crowded on the walls, how could a painter get the viewer’s attention?: 

Salon of 1824: with so many paintings crowded on the walls, how could a painter get the viewer’s attention?

ROSS KING ON THE PARIS SALONS: 

ROSS KING ON THE PARIS SALONS The Salon was one of the greatest spectacles in Europe. It was an even more popular attraction, in terms of the crowds it drew, than public executions. Opening to the public in the first week of May and running for some six weeks, it featured thousands of works of art specially--and sometimes controversially--chosen by a Selection Committee. Admission on most afternoons was only a franc, which placed it within easy reach of virtually every Parisian, considering the wage of the lowest-paid workers, such as milliners and washerwomen, averaged three to four francs a day. Those unwilling or unable to pay could visit on Sundays, when admission was free and the Palais des Champs-Élysées thronged with as many as 50,000 visitors--five times the number that had gathered in 1857 to watch the blade of guillotine descend on the neck of a priest named Verger who had murdered the Archbishop of Paris. In some years, as many as a million people visited the Salon during its six-week run, meaning crowds averaged more than 23,000 people a day. To put these figures into context, the most well-attended art exhibition in the year 2003 was Leonardo da Vinci: Master Draftsman , at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Over the course of a nine-week run, the show drew an average of 6,863 visitors each day, with an overall total of 401,004. El Greco , likewise at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, averaged 6,807 per day during its three-month run in 2003-4, ultimately attracting 574,381 visitors. The top-ranked exhibition of 2002, Van Gogh and Gauguin , at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, drew 6,719 per day for four months, with a final attendance of 739,117. From Ross King, The Judgment of Paris. New York: Walker and Company, 2006, p. 17 .

Ingres, The Source, 1856 Ostensibly a Classical Muse, this is actually a very young woman, fully nude & fully displayed for the presumably heterosexual male viewer. In other words, it was created for the viewing pleasure of men, for the MALE GAZE. (More on that later.): 

Ingres, The Source, 1856 Ostensibly a Classical Muse, this is actually a very young woman, fully nude & fully displayed for the presumably heterosexual male viewer. In other words, it was created for the viewing pleasure of men, for the MALE GAZE. (More on that later.)

Ingres, Portrait of Comtesse dHaussonville, 1845: 

Ingres, Portrait of Comtesse dHaussonville , 1845

Ingres, Madame Moitessier, 1856 Another image with a large mirror in the background: 

Ingres, Madame Moitessier , 1856 Another image with a large mirror in the background

Ingres, Madame Moitessier,1856 & Picasso, La Reve, 1932: 

Ingres, Madame Moitessier, 1856 & Picasso, La Reve , 1932

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Two journalists: Ingres, Louis Bertin (1832) & Nadar, Jules Janin (1855) The painting is 45” x 37” while the photo is less than 5” tall.

This painting by Thomas Couture— Romans of the Decadence (over 15’ x 25’!)— won the Academy Award for best picture in 1847: 

This painting by Thomas Couture— Romans of the Decadence (over 15’ x 25’!)— won the Academy Award for best picture in 1847

Couture’s masterpiece in the Orsay Museum, Paris: 

Couture’s masterpiece in the Orsay Museum, Paris

Couture gave the Salon audiences what they loved & expected: *Grand historical themes *Stories that were intended to educate & elevate *Cinematic drama *A sense of moral righteousness *Images that reflected the popular taste for highly idealized “photographic” realism …and just enough SEX to make it fun : 

Couture gave the Salon audiences what they loved & expected: * Grand historical themes *Stories that were intended to educate & elevate *Cinematic drama *A sense of moral righteousness *Images that reflected the popular taste for highly idealized “photographic” realism …and just enough SEX to make it fun

Ideas about sex & morality were depicted on television in very different ways at different times throughout the 20th century. During the 1950s, Ricky & Lucy were not allowed to sleep in the same bed, even though they were married in real life. But today, well, how sex is portrayed in Sex and The City?: 

Ideas about sex & morality were depicted on television in very different ways at different times throughout the 20 th century. During the 1950s, Ricky & Lucy were not allowed to sleep in the same bed, even though they were married in real life. But today, well, how sex is portrayed in Sex and The City ?

Ingres, Le Grande Odalisque, 1814 A European model is posed as a harem girl *An exotic “Orientalist” object *Re-enforces gender roles *Displayed for the consuming male gaze: 

Ingres, Le Grande Odalisque, 1814 A European model is posed as a harem girl *An exotic “Orientalist” object *Re-enforces gender roles *Displayed for the consuming male gaze

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In 1978, Edward Said wrote an influential book, Orientalism , in which he analyzed the historic way that people in Western Culture viewed OTHERS, specifically others from the Middle & Far East. “There are Westerners and there are Orientals. The former dominate; the later must be dominated, which means having their land occupied, their internal affairs tightly controlled, their blood & treasure (oil) put at the disposal of one or another Western culture.”

A painting by French Academic artist Jean-Leon Gerome appears on the cover of Said’s volume. Gerome, The Snake Charmer, 1889 : 

A painting by French Academic artist Jean-Leon Gerome appears on the cover of Said’s volume. Gerome, The Snake Charmer, 1889

Jean-Léon Gérôme & Orientalism : 

Jean-Léon Gérôme & Orientalism In 1854, French academic painter Gérôme (1824-1904) travelled to Turkey. Three years later, he visited Egypt & Northern Africa. His best-known works have “Orientalist” themes.

Gerome’s Pollice Verso (1872) inspired Ridley Scott to create his award-winning film Gladiator.: 

Gerome’s Pollice Verso (1872) inspired Ridley Scott to create his award-winning film Gladiator .

GEROME’S PAINTINGS: Have powerful emotional impact Employ a film director’s sense of staging And, like many Hollywood films, are sanitized, idealized & exoticized : 

GEROME’S PAINTINGS: Have powerful emotional impact Employ a film director’s sense of staging And, like many Hollywood films, are sanitized, idealized & exoticized

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Gérôme’s works commonly utilized Islamic architecture & material culture to falsely authenticate European fantasies. His paintings depicted stereotypes about the Middle East, conveying them in ways that made them seem real. His paintings perpetuated the validity of Western fantasies & fetishes. The inaccessibility of Muslim women fascinated Western men. Representations of women from this period are most prominently featured in scenes from the harem--or rather the Western conception of the harem.

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The ideas imbued in Orientalist images of women involved Western male longings to capture, objectify & conquer Muslim women--as a reflection of their desire to gain access & control of the terrain of the Orient. Gérôme’s bather provides viewers with an example of the psychological power that this type of image contains. In it, the Western male gaze is intruding upon a private female domain, one which Gérôme & his audience would never have seen. From: Western Representations of Muslim Women in Orientalist, Colonialist & Modern Images

Slave Market Gérôme : 

Slave Market Gérôme

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Gerome, The Slave Market, 1866

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Erotic image in the guise of an Egyptian scene Woman as commodity European superiority--since Europeans had banned slavery (long before the US)

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The Orient of the 19 th century (basically what we today call the Middle East) was not based on empirical reality--but on desires, repressions, investments & projections of Western culture. According to Edward Said, “The Orient was a European invention--a place of romance, exotic beings, haunting memories, landscapes & remarkable experiences.”

WESTERN CULTURE: 

WESTERN CULTURE Civilized Reason Intellect Refined Culture Mature Normal Virtuous “WE”/The Self

WEST/EAST As BIPOLAR OPPOSITION: 

WEST / EAST As BIPOLAR OPPOSITION Civilized Rational Intellect Savage/Exotic Passion Physical Urges Culture Mature Virtuous Nature Childlike Depraved Normal “Self” Different “Other”

Orientalism continues today, especially in film & television.: 

Orientalism continues today, especially in film & television. According to Jack Shaheen, “Orientals or Arabs are [portrayed as] devoid of initiative, given to flattery, intrigue, cunning, unkindness to animals, cannot walk on roads or pavement, are liars, lethargic, suspicious & in everything oppose the directness, clarity & nobility of the Anglo-Saxon race.”

Jack Shaheen is an Arab American who has written books & produced videos on the portrayal of Arabs in Hollywood films. He traces these stereotypes back to 19th century Orientalist paintings like Gerome’s.: 

Jack Shaheen is an Arab American who has written books & produced videos on the portrayal of Arabs in Hollywood films. He traces these stereotypes back to 19 th century Orientalist paintings like Gerome’s.

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"Hollywood declares war on Iranians […] It seeks to tell people that Iran, which is in the Axis of Evil, has long been the source of evil and modern Iranians' ancestors are the ugly murderous dumb savages you see in 300 .”

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Shaheen asserts that long before 300 , Middle Eastern people were most often portrayed as: Blood thirsty Dishonest Fanatic Devious Sadistic Cruel Treacherous Hateful

Persepolis Bull Head Oriental Institute Museum, Chicago: 

Persepolis Bull Head Oriental Institute Museum, Chicago As early as the 17th century, the idea was that colonial conquests demonstrated the superiority of Western civilization. This was reinforced in the 19 th century when “captured” objects were brought home from dark-skinned peoples and paraded and displayed in museums (like in ancient Rome). The booty of colonialism was proof of the West’s superiority.

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“There are Westerners and there are Orientals. The former dominate; the later must be dominated, which means having their land occupied, their internal affairs tightly controlled, their blood & treasure (oil) put at the disposal of one or another Western culture… "I urge everyone to join in & not leave the field of values, definitions & cultures uncontested.” Edward Said, Orientalism , 1978

Shirin Neshat: 

Shirin Neshat “Living in the West has exposed her to the opinion that the chador signals the requirement to hide their bodies, restrain signs of sexuality and suppress their individuality. “The tradition was revived during the revolution and it became a way to demonstrate opposition to the insinuation of Western values. “It was not uncommon in the late 1970’s to see Muslim women robed and carrying machine guns.” From Linda Weintraub, In The Making

Two different views of Middle Eastern women, one by a 19th century European man--Ingres--& the other by a contemporary Iranian woman, Shirin Neshat.: 

Two different views of Middle Eastern women, one by a 19 th century European man--Ingres--& the other by a contemporary Iranian woman, Shirin Neshat.

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An odalisque was a female slave or concubine in the harem of the Turkish sultan. The word appears in a French form & originates from the Turkish odaliq , meaning "chambermaid,” ultimately derived from oda , "chamber" or "room.”

Julianne Moore as La Grande Odalisque: 

Julianne Moore as La Grande Odalisque

One more issue: THE MALE GAZE Women presented as Objects of the Gaze: 

One more issue: THE MALE GAZE Women presented as Objects of the Gaze Passive female objects. The presumed viewer is a heterosexual male. The woman is the object of the gaze. The gaze confers power according to gender . The gaze is consuming, aggressive

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Art historian Carol Duncan notes that “unlike women, who are seen primarily as sexually accessible bodies, men are portrayed as physically & mentally active beings who creatively shape their world and ponder its meaning.”

British art historian John Berger has noted that, in our culture, “Men act & women appear.” Below: Ruth Orkin, An American Girl in Italy,1952: 

British art historian John Berger has noted that, in our culture, “Men act & women appear.” Below: Ruth Orkin, An American Girl in Italy ,1952

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Berger also writes about the uncomfortable laughter that occurs when we reverse the roles. (Not that you’re laughing at this image—but you get the point that the reversal gives this image its power.)

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Note that Ingres’ Odalisques all look white. Exotic otherness was a necessary facade, an unwritten code of respectability & a contradictory standard for sexual representation. Western culture forbade the viewing of white Western women in this manner…but it was OK if the nudes appeared to be “Oriental.”

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Academic painting was popular because it had the content of today’s mass media: Drama Sex Violence & Escapist Fantasy