Posts
Alphonse de Neuville presented two paintings to the 1859 Salon, both portrayals of the Siege of Sebastopol: Assault of 15 June 1855, four o’clock in the morning, and Assaut du 18 Juillet. These paintings were acclaimed by the Salon and, along with his monumental painting Bataille de Magenta [The Battle of Magenta], marked a turning point in his career. Today they are part of the collection at the Musées de Saint-Omer.
Alphonse de Neuville was one of those painters who was spared the difficulties often associated with the life of an artist. Only his premature death matches the cliché. Despite his sheltered youth, de Neuville was not an artist for pacifists; after all, he was born in a period of war and himself served as an officer in the French army.
The famous battle painter was born in 1836 in Saint-Omer, the son of a rich landed nobility. The small town is located on the northeast coast of France, not far from the famous port of Calais. De Neuville received a good school education and was not at all interested in painting during his childhood and youth, but showed great enthusiasm for the many technical achievements that began to change the world in the mid-19th century . This passion is also reflected in his professional aspirations. After obtaining his high school diploma, he decided to become an engineer and attended the Lorient Naval Academy. Here de Neuville not only cultivated contact with other cadets, but he also came into contact for the first time with scientists, philosophers and artists. The young Alphonse was particularly impressed by the history and portrait painter Francois Edouard Picot , whose student he eventually became. Picot maintains contacts with Parisian salons and introduces his student to these environments. This is also how he came into contact with Eugene Delacroix , an important pioneer of Impressionism. In his Parisian studio, de Neuville continued his artistic training and was able to present his first major work, "Episode of the Crimean War", to the Parisian public a year later.
He then began working as a designer for publishing houses and illustrated works by well-known authors such as Alexandre Dumas and Jules Verne. His career as an artist was interrupted in 1870/1871 by the Franco-Prussian War, in which he participated as an officer. The experiences of the war must have had a strong influence on him and therefore determined his favorite subject. In post-war Paris, he quickly progressed to become a highly respected battle painter. He received numerous awards for his work and was first made a knight, then an officer of the Legion of Honor. His patriotic style is part of the era of moral renewal that France experienced after the lost war, even if modern criticism often accuses the artist of glorifying war. His powerful and optimistic paintings are still admired today.
The best known are the two paintings "The Last Cartridges" and "The Cemetery of Saint-Privat", whose great success he owes to his admission to the Legion of Honor. More on Alphonse de Neuville
Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, Portrait of a Lady, The Orientalist, Art of the Nude and The Canals of Venice, Middle East Artists, 365 Saints, 365 Days, and Biblical Icons, also visit my Boards on Pinterest
Images are copyright of their respective owners, assignees or others.
Some Images may be subject to copyright
I don't own any of these images - credit is always given when due unless
it is unknown to me. if I post your images without your permission, please tell
me.
I do not sell art, art prints, framed posters or reproductions. Ads are
shown only to compensate the hosting expenses.
If you enjoyed this post, please share with friends and family.
Thank you for visiting my blog and also for liking its posts and pages.
Please note that the content of this post primarily consists of articles
available from Wikipedia or other free sources online.
No comments:
Post a Comment