Greek gods, French emperors, beauty, death, love and despair are all on display at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in the work of Anne-Louis Girodet-Trioson. This retrospective is the first ever done on Girodet and the first exhibit to display his work in North America. It delves into the life and times of the French Neoclassical and Romantic artist.
The exhibit,
Girodet, Romantic Rebel, explores the inner psyche and personality of the painter in a series of monumental paintings, portraits, landscapes and sketches that evokes a deep emotional response.
The exhibit, which generally moves in chronological order, gives a comprehensive study on the development of Girodet's style from Neoclassical to Romantic while providing interesting and relevant historical and personal information that offers extra insight into the pieces. Quotations from letters and reviews of the time allow a peek into the artist's thoughts and the world in which he created his masterpieces.
The historical and personal information is particularly relevant, as Girodet was known for his explosive and eccentric personality and his letters allow him to speak through his writing as well as his visual creations.
The lighting of the exhibit creates an excellent environment in most cases, but causes serious glare on a few of the glossy oil paintings. The only other interruption to the atmosphere is the permeating sound of opera music coming from a somewhat grainy video on his colossal work,
Revolt at Cairo, which was too large to move to Montreal.
Although Revolt did not make it to this exhibit, Girodet's more famous works such as
The Burial of Atala,
Sleeping Endymion and
Ossian Receiving the Ghosts of the Heroes of the French Revolution are displayed, along with pertinent information about the artist's commissions and the French art world at the time.
A good amount of time can be spent at the exhibit, as many of Girodet's works include a narrative and involve a mystery and sensuality that draws the viewer in and connects one with the painting. The use of light to delineate well-formed and defined bodies is a trademark of his style and each figure seems to exude an ethereal light. When coupled with his anatomical accuracy, this makes his work seem both extremely real and supernatural at the same time.
The exhibit is on display from Oct. 12 to Jan. 21. Admission is $7.50 for students and $15 for adults.
2008 Woodie Awards
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