Art created in the nineteenth century created a new category of art called the Avant-Guarde. This is a term first associated with art by Saint Simon, who encouraged artists to create works that motivated society to do things for the greater good. The term Avant-Guarde was originally used to describe the soldiers in the French military who were ahead of the troops. After its association with art, it was coined to identify artists who went beyond others and challenged the artistic standards governed by the Academy. Avant-Guarde is connected with art that is seen as revolutionary, or innovative. Artists considered to be part of this were those who challenged traditional conventions such as realism and illusionism, which is what the Academy holds in high regards.
Manet is a great example of Avant-Guarde painting. In fact, in 1960 Clement Greenberg, author of the “Modernist Painting” essay, claimed that Manet’s work began the Modernist movement. Greenberg argued that nineteenth century painting started to “purify” itself and get rid of the more traditional elements of art such as illusionism; it simply becomes nothing more than paint on a canvas. One of Manet’s most controversial paintings is Le Dejeuner sur L’herbe. First of all, it is obvious that Manet has broken away from traditional conventions with his technique. Paintings of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, for example, were smooth and the paint was well blended and varnished several times. Manet, on the other hand, left his brush strokes visible because he wanted his painting to look flat, to diminish perspective. Manet has given the viewer a reference to the art world with his incorporation of a nude woman. However, alongside the woman are two modern clothed men. This sparks a bit of confusion in the viewer. The men’s style of clothing suggests that this scene takes place in modern day, and that this is a representation of an everyday occurrence. What is so strange is that these characteristics of the naked woman and the men are casually combined into one painting. What is interesting about the naked woman is that she is facing the two men as if engaging in conversation, but she is turned gazing at the viewer as if to include them in the scene. Another element of the Academy’s tradition that Manet ruins is the illusionism of depth. For example, the woman in the water behind the picnic does not appear as far away as the artist is suggesting. In order for the image to make sense spatially, she would have to be much smaller in proportion to the three people in the foreground. In conclusion, Manet’s painting Le Dejeuner sur L’herbe is a perfect example of an Avant-Guarde painting because of his modern approach to subject matter and technique that goes against traditional conventions established by the Academy.
I like that you mentioned how "avant-garde" was originally a French military term. Knowing that, you'll get the joke that a cartoonist named Cham intended when he mocked the Impressionists in the 1877 publication "Le Charviari." In THIS CARTOON, Cham depicts Turkish soldiers fleeing in horror from the "avant-garde" Impressionist artists, who hold up their paintings like shields or weapons. Since avant-garde paintings have typically been received by the public in a very negative way (as was the case with the Impressionists, as we will see in the weeks to come), it makes sense that Cham would depict the soldiers running away in fear!
ReplyDelete-Prof. Bowen