Rembrandt Is in the Wind by Russ Ramsey

Author:Russ Ramsey [Ramsey, Russ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2022-02-02T00:00:00+00:00

The Salon and the Anonymous Society

In the early days of Impressionism, the art world in France was ruled by the Salon in Paris. The Salon was founded more than two hundred years earlier, in 1667, as France’s official exhibition of the Academy of Fine Arts, established by the government as the nationally recognized venue for art patronage. The government regarded painting as a worthy profession and created a system of advancement through a series of tiered competitions. For a painter, Malcolm Gladwell noted, “at each stage of his education, there would be competition. Those who did poorly would be weeded out. Those who did well would win awards and prestigious fellowships, and at the pinnacle of the profession was the Salon, the most important art exhibition in all of Europe.”9

The Salon was originally formed to showcase the work of graduates from the academy, but it soon expanded to show art from a wide variety of artists. It was an “invitation only” affair. The Salon became the place people would look to if they wanted to know which art was popular, and for those lacking a discerning eye, which art was good. A panel of artists, academics, and critics known as “The Jury” chose what would be shown at each year’s Salon Exposition. They also chose the prominence of placement each work would receive.

The Jury did not like the Impressionists. When artists like Monet, Manet, and Renoir submitted their work, it was usually rejected or, if accepted, placed too high on the walls of the exhibition hall to be seen.

Monet summarized the challenge the Salon presented when he said, “There were a few of us, my friends and myself, who were systematically rejected by Jury. It’s all very well to paint, but you have to sell, you have to live. The dealers would have nothing to do with us. And yet we had to exhibit. Where? Should we rent a hall? But when we had a whip round, we barely had enough to take a box at the Théâtre de Cluny.”10

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