REALISM IN EUROPE
Part Two
Because art history tends to focus towards all things French, French “Realism” is often considered the exemplar of European Realism. Given that the British did not experience a violent Revolution in 1848, it is certainly correct to say that in France the tensions between classes was most acute. Although Realism is usually associated with its principle figures, Gustave Courbet and Édouard Manet, there were many important Realist artists in France whose ideas about art and whose realist principles were quite varied. For decades, the broader movement of Realism produced works of art that were supportive of the dominant forces in society or that interrogated the prevailing norms. The podcast discusses Realism in the context of the political and social conditions in late nineteenth century France.
Also listen to “Realism in Europe, Part One”, and read “Avant-Garde Realism inFrance” and “Realism and the Role of the Realist Artist” and “Realism and Naturalism in Art” and “Avant-Garde Realism in England” and “The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood” and “Charles Baudelaire and Art Criticism” and “Charles Baudelaire, Author of Modernism”