Gericault, Theodore

A family. Childhood and Youth

Theodore Gericault was born in 1791 in Rouen . His father, Georges-Nicola Gericault, was a wealthy man: the owner of tobacco plantations and a large tobacco merchant, and his mother, Louise-Jeanne-Marie Caruel de Saint-Martin, came from a family belonging to the Normandy aristocracy. The Gericault family moved to Paris in 1796. In 1801, Theodore was placed in the boarding house of the private boarding house Dubois-Loisot, and then his father transferred him to the boarding house of Rene Richard Castell. In 1804, Gericault entered the Imperial Lyceum . After the death of his mother, the father brought up Theodore. The boy early began to show interest in painting, this was facilitated by communication with his uncle, Jean-Baptiste Caruel, who collected works by Flemish and Dutch artists. Familiar uncles, aspiring artists and students of Guerin , Adelaide de Montgolfier and Louise Swaton, took Theodore with them to the museum, where they copied the works of old masters. The boy spent his vacations in Normandy, where, according to one of his friends, he drew a lot ^[2] .

Years of study

At the end of 1808, Gericault entered training with Karl Vernet , the master of battle and genre scenes, whose work reflected the whole life of imperial Paris. In the Vernet workshop, the novice artist for the most part practiced the depiction of horses, got acquainted with the anatomical drawing of the animal, here he had the opportunity to see prints made from the works of English animalists , and copied the paintings of Vernet. Gericault also visited the Louvre , where he studied horse scenes adorning the ancient sarcophagi. Theodore became an entrance to the house of Vernet, with whom he visited the Franconi circus, arenas and horse factories in Paris and its immediate vicinity. During the years of study with Vernet, his friendship began with the son of the teacher - Horace , perhaps these friendships are the reason that Jericho remained for so long in Vernet's workshop ^[3] .

In 1810, Gericault left Vernet's workshop to continue his studies with Pierre Guerin , who, according to Etienne Delecluse, was "the only one at that time - after David, in any case - who had a real disposition for pedagogy" ^[4] . At the beginning of the 19th century, the French public and critics saw in Gehren as an artist who moved away from the art of David and his followers. A significant role in this trend was played by the anti-David reaction, in fact, the reforms of Guerin continued in the direction indicated by the David school. Be that as it may, but from the workshop of Guerin, the “adherent of the David school” and the least “pre-romantic” ^[5] master of his time, the most prominent representatives of romanticism came out ^[5] . Little reliable information has been preserved about the teaching methods in the workshop of Guerin. It is only known that he did not impose his views on the students, and the latter did not receive a systematic vocational education. Gericault visited the studio of Guerin irregularly for about six months, probably in order to be able to write from nature and communicate with other students of the master. One of them, the artist Champione, wrote in a new way - “with a fat brush”, this influenced the manner of Jericho's writing, and later on the manner of another student of Guerin - Eugene Delacroix . Theodore continued to visit Guerin even after graduation, maintaining contact with him and his students. Subsequently, Theodore was the first to invite Guerin to see the just-completed “Raft of the Medusa” ^[6] .

As in the Vernet studio, Gericault copied the works of the teacher from Guerin, as well as redrawing the anatomical sheets. The paintings painted by him at that time (“Samson and Delilah”, “Departure of the Odyssey from Ithaki Island”, “Defense of the Thermopyllic Gorge”), according to Charles Clement, the artist’s biographer, were distinguished by an “energetic brush”; character movements lacking uniformity; "Compositional rhythms" dating back to David's painting. With Gerin’s training for Gericault, the process of forming an individual style began, and soon he, no longer needing any guidance, switched to independent work ^[7] .

Probably in the years 1811-1812, Jericho performed about fifty sketches with nude sitters. His picturesque studies from the usual academic at that time are distinguished by a “bold and energetic brush”; unexpected, almost theatrical effects of chiaroscuro; tense dramatic mood. The artist does not seek to accurately reproduce the nature, but composes a new look for each character. One of the typical examples of such studies is the “Study of the Model” (Moscow, the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts ) from the series “Gladiators”. The contrast of deep shade and harsh light emphasizes the alarming image of a man who is "subject to rock." As V. Turchin notes, these works of Gericault recall the words of Guerin, addressed to the student: “Your color is devoid of credibility: all these contrasts of light and shadow can make me think that you are writing in the moonlight ...” ^[8]

At the same time, Jericho wrote horse studies, which are fundamentally different from his studies with sitters. The artist worked in the Versailles stables mainly in 1811-1813. He created "portraits" of famous horses, one of his paintings - "Horse of Napoleon" - received the award of Empress Maria Louise . In the process, the artist searched for the individuality inherent in each animal, studied its habits, practiced the exact image of the breed. His horses are placed in a specific, most often natural, environment. Gericault painted these canvases with small brushes, working out the details and avoiding large color spots and strong black and white contrasts. A variety of writing styles, manifested in the work on the studies of sitters and horses, will be characteristic of him in the future. A passionate lover of horses and riding, he created works of a purely animalistic genre, similar to which had not yet been in France ^[9] .

Probably, during these years Gericault performed his plaster eccentric “Horse”, which was widely known among contemporaries. In sculptural works, he developed motifs, which he later transferred to the painting ^[10] .

Learning from the Old Masters

Gericault carefully copied the paintings of old masters, starting with Renaissance artists. Among those whose originals, either with engraving replicas of the works ^[11], attracted Theodore: P. P. Rubens , Titian , D. Velazquez , Rembrandt , Giorgione , Parmigianino and many others. More than sixty copies made by Gericault are known. He continued to study the old masters during his trips to Italy (1816-1817) and England (1820-1821). Gericault also completed a series of graphic sheets processing themes from paintings by Michelangelo, Carracci , French followers of Caravaggio and decorative works of artists of the XVIII century. He did not strive to imitate the original, generalizing much, giving more expression to rhythm, enhancing the coloristic solution of the picture ^[12] : “He strove to comprehend the mystery of the huge vitality, the scale of the images of the works of old masters, their impact on the modern viewer. Striving for active, effective art, he longed to find examples of the same understanding in previous times. This determined the direction of his searches ” ^[13] .

Salons of 1812 and 1814

In 1812, Gericault presented his work “ Portrait of Dieudonne ” in the Salon (currently exhibited as “Officer of the Imperial Horse Rangers, going on the attack” (Paris, Louvre). The picture of the artist, unknown until then neither to the general public, nor in the professional environment (they even said that he "hardly studied"), attracted the attention of critics. She was praised by M.-B. Bhutar, advising a novice artist to take up the battle genre , which in the era of the Empire was placed above the rest. J. Durdan, who placed the analysis of the canvas in the “Gallery de Paintur Francez”, spoke of Gericault as “perhaps the best of all our painters”. The canvas was noted by David himself ^[14] .

Probably the success of the “Officer ...” gave Gericault the idea of ​​creating a series on the military history of Napoleonic France. But he, unlike the famous masters of that era, did not conceive large-scale works with images of battles and parades, but sought to convey the “spirit of the times” in portraits of soldiers and officers, representatives of all military branches (“Portrait of a Carabinieri Officer”, “Trumpeter Hussars”, “Three Mountaineers”, “Veteran”, “Head of a Soldier”). Gericault was not bound by the terms of official orders, like Gro, Girode and David, and therefore was free in his interpretation of what was happening. His works of 1813-1815 are distinguished by "vivid pictorial temperament, and sometimes even subtle psychologism." They were certainly written from specific people, however, there are no clearly expressed individuals, the focus is on the person as the bearer of traits of one type or another ^[15] .

Paris first saw the “Officer of Equestrian Imperial Rangers during the attack” when it was already known about the defeat of the French army in Russia (autumn 1812), and in the Salon of 1814 this composition was paired with “A wounded cuirassier leaving the battlefield ” ( Paris, Louvre Museum). The salon of 1814 was held after the fall of Napoleon, and Gericault's paintings were the only reminder of the already tragic and glorious era, standing out among the works of other artists who chose neutral themes. Art critics in their reviews of the Salon either wrote nothing about the works of Gericault, or spoke disapproving of them ^[16] .

Gericault's actions at that time were so contradictory that the artist’s biographers find it difficult to explain what guided him in their decisions. At the end of 1814 (December), with the assistance of his father and uncle, he, recently evading military duties, acquired a patent for service in a musketeer company under the command of Loriston - a privileged military unit. During the Hundred Days, Jericho was in the escort of Louis XVIII fleeing, then, under the guise of a peasant, the artist moved to Normandy, where he probably remained until the middle of the summer of 1815 ^[17] .

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  Imperial guard horse ranger officer attacking, 1812

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  Wounded cuirassier leaving the battlefield. 1814. Paris, Louvre Museum

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  The flood. OK. 1814. Paris, Louvre Museum

Despite unfavorable personal circumstances, it was at this time that a new style of the artist was being formed, he turned to new topics, and developed new ideas. Returning to Paris, he began work on the composition "Flood", which is a free revision of the "Flood" of Poussin from the Louvre. This canvas, which is essentially a “landscape-drama” ^[18] , is clearly created under the influence of Italian fine art, primarily the work of Michelangelo , which is especially noticeable in the plastic solution of the figures of dying people. Subsequently, Gericault most fully developed the theme of man in the face of the elements in his most famous painting, “The Raft of the Medusa” ” ^[19] .

Italy

Gericault, like many European artists, sought to visit Italy to study the works of old masters. Funds for the trip could be obtained by participating in the competition of the School of Fine Arts, and Jericho originally intended to write for him the composition "Dying Paris." However, the work did not work out, and the artist made money for the trip by completing landscape panels for the house of one of his friends in Villa Kotra . This circumstance unleashed Gericault’s hands: having won the School’s competition, he would have been obliged to spend six years in Italy (the full duration of a retirement trip), which was not part of his plans. The artist was temporarily leaving France and for another reason, this time of a personal nature. At that time, he entered into a love affair with his uncle's wife, Alexandrina-Modest Caruel, and was afraid of her disclosure ^[20] .

On October 10, 1816, Gericault arrived in Florence, by his own admission, the “terrible state of mind” caused by troubles in his personal life did not leave him. He visited representatives of high society, attended theater performances, rode on horseback and did not work with paints at all, but he always carried with him an album in which he made pencil sketches. The artist examined local churches and museums, painted Masaccio's frescoes in Santa Maria Novella and sculptures from the tombs of the Medici , as well as drawings from antique ceramics , antique sculpture and tombs ^[21] .

He traveled to Naples, painted local landscapes and residents, studied the works of artists of the Neapolitan school . Jericho spent most of his time in Rome. Seeing firsthand the work of Michelangelo (the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel made a particularly strong impression on him), Gericault, as Clement reports, was shocked. He is fascinated by the monumentalization of forms, his pen drawings, reminiscent of Michelangelo's drawings (for example, "The Man Throwing the Bull"), have become one of the most interesting performed in Rome ^[22] .

Having Guerin’s recommendations with him, the artist saw pensioners from the French Academy, whose ideals he did not share. Nevertheless, Auguste became his close acquaintances in Rome (since 1814 he worked mainly as a sculptor), Schnetz (at that time engaged in genre painting), Tom and Robert ^[23] . Gericault was looking for stories for a large composition or several compositions. At first, he was attracted to paintings of everyday life, genre or street scenes, but soon the artist lost interest in the “sentimental Italian” (Turchin), he was not interested in ancient myths and ancient history ^[24] .

Inspiration came to the end of the Roman carnival, in early February 1817. The celebration ended with a competition of saddles running through the streets of the city from Piazza del Popolo to the Venetian Palace . A passionate horse lover, Gericault created a number of paintings on this subject. He conceived a grandiose composition (about 10 meters long). The sketches for her are either precisely captured motifs (as Charles Clement put it, “like portraits”), or variants of a generalized transmission of nature. Gericault worked in a modern manner and classic antikizirovanny (finishing work in the ancient style). For a pictorial sketch (1817, Baltimore , Walter Picture Gallery ), he used a composition of the engraving popular at that time with a picture of a competition, designed in a classic spirit. Gericault gave the scene a more vibrant and contemporary character using intense color; achieved greater expression due to some reduction in space and trimming of stands with spectators and figures of grooms holding animals ^[25] . Another variation of the theme - several sketches designed in an antikizirovannym manner - of which the most successful art historians recognize the version stored now in Rouen ("The Horse Stopped by Slaves "). According to Charles Clement, it is she who is closest to the canvas conceived by Gericault. In this work, the artist successfully synthesized his observations of the landscapes of Poussin, the " Parthenon rhythms" (Turchin), the results of the study of human images by Michelangelo and Mannerists ^[26] . Finally, in the last (according to Clement) sketch (Paris, Louvre), Gericault turned to a generalization of the image. This time he again chose the moment before the start, violating the laws of promising construction for the sake of greater expressiveness and expression of the composition ^[27] .

In September 1817, Gericault left Italy. He himself assessed the year spent there as “unhappy and sad,” apparently due to loneliness, turmoil in his personal life and, most of all, dissatisfaction with the results of the work: he still did not satisfy his thirst for the grandiose, epic that was owned by many artists of that time . He was unable to break out of the confines of chamber and create a work of scale and appeal to people ^[28] .

“Jellyfish Raft”

In the fall of 1817 the book “The death of the frigate“ Medusa ”” was published. Eyewitnesses of the event, geographic engineer Alexander Correard and doctor Henri Savigny, described one of the most tragic episodes in the history of the French fleet - a thirteen-day wandering raft with frigate passengers who left a ship stranded off the Canary Islands . The book (probably this was its second edition) fell into the hands of Gericault, who saw a story in history for his large canvas. He took the drama “Medusa” not only and not so much as “a didactic example of narrow political significance” (the captain of a frigate, a former emigrant, who was responsible for most of the deaths of raft passengers, was appointed by patronage), but as a universal story ^[29] .

Gericault took the path of reconstructing what happened through a study of the materials available to him and meeting with witnesses and, as Clement says, drew up a “dossier of testimonies and documents”. The artist met Correar and Savigny, probably even painted their portraits. He thoroughly studied their book, possibly a publication with lithographs that accurately depicted episodes of a tragic event. The carpenter who served on the frigate, performed for Gericault a reduced copy of the raft ^[30] . The artist himself made wax figures of people and, placing them on a raft, studied composition from different points of view, perhaps using the camera obscura ^[31] . According to the researchers, Gericault might have been familiar with Savigny’s pamphlet, “Review of the effects of hunger and thirst, experienced after the death of the frigate Medusa” (1818). He visited hospital morgues, doing sketches of dead heads, emaciated bodies, severed limbs, and in his studio he, according to the artist O. Raffe, created something like an anatomical theater. The trip to Le Havre completed the preparatory work, where Gericault wrote sketches of the sea and sky ^[32] .

The art critic Lorenz Eitner singled out several main plots that were developed by Gericault ^[33] : “Salvation of victims”, “Battle on the raft”, “ Cannibalism ”, “Appearance of“ Argus ”” ^[34] . In total, in the process of choosing a plot, the artist created about a hundred studies, the scenes of salvation and cannibalism on a raft turned out to be the most interesting for him ^[35] .

Finally, Gericault dwelled on one of the moments of the highest tension in history: on the morning of the last day of the raft drift, when the few survivors saw the Argus ship on the horizon ^[36] . Gericault rented a studio in which a grandiose canvas conceived by him could fit, and worked on it for eight months, almost without leaving the workshop ^[37] .

Gericault created a composition of four groups of characters, abandoning the classical constructions using parallel lines, he formed an energetic diagonal. From a group with dead bodies and a father bending over his dead son, the viewer's gaze is directed to the four figures at the mast. The dynamic contrast of their restraint is made by people trying to rise and a group of beeping signals. The ocean does not take up much space on a huge canvas, but the artist managed to convey the feeling of "the scale of the raging elements" ^[38] .

According to the testimony of a student of Vernet and a friend of Gericault, Antoine Montfort, Theodore painted directly on an untreated canvas (“on a white surface”, without undermining and colored soil ), on which only a preparatory drawing was applied. However, his hand was firm:

“I watched with what close attention he looked at the model before touching the canvas with a brush; it seemed that he was extremely slow, although he actually acted quickly: his smear fell exactly in place, so that no corrections were necessary. ” ^[37]

In the same way, David wrote in due time, the method of which has been familiar to Gericault since his apprenticeship with Guerin ^[39] . Gericault was completely absorbed in work, he left social life, only a few friends came to him. He began to write in the early morning, as soon as lighting allowed and worked until the evening.

«Плот „Медузы“» получил противоречивые отклики у французских критиков и публики. Лишь спустя годы картина была оценена по достоинству. Успех «Плот "Медузы"» имел в Лондоне, где предпринимателем Буллоком была организована её выставка. Она проходила с 12 июня по 30 декабря 1820 года, картину увидели около 50 тысяч посетителей. Критики называли «Медузу» шедевром, который отражает реальную жизнь, а её автор удостоился сравнения с Микеланджело и Караваджо . Вместе с тем, не слишком разбираясь в реалиях современной французской живописи, британцы причисляли Жерико к представителям школы Давида. Критик из « Таймс » говорил о «холодности», которой отличалась эта школа и отмечал в картине Жерико те же «холодность колорита, искусственность поз, патетизм». Лондонская выставка одной картины стала успешной для Жерико и в материальном плане, он имел право на треть выручки от продажи входных билетов и получил 20 тысяч франков ^[40] .

Последние годы

Вернувшись в Париж из Англии , Жерико много болел, его состояние усугубилось несколькими падениями во время верховых прогулок. Он умер в Париже 26 января 1824 года.

Луи Арагон сделал Жерико главным героем своего романа «Страстная неделя» («La semaine Sainte»). Действие романа происходит одну неделю — с 19 по 26 марта 1815 года; юный Жерико, служащий в армии Людовика XVIII в Париже, со смешанными чувствами ожидает предполагаемый захват французской столицы Наполеоном .

• Turchin V. Theodor Gericault: Monograph. - M .: Fine Arts , 1982. - 208 p. - 35,000 copies.

• Biography
• Gericault, Jean-Louis-Andre-Theodore // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.