Liberté! Ary Scheffer and French Romanticism

Liberté! Ary Scheffer and French Romanticism tells the story of Dutch painter Ary Scheffer and his artistic battle for freedom and equality; the ideals of the French Revolution of 1789.

Liberté! Ary Scheffer and French Romanticism takes you to turbulent Paris in the first half of the nineteenth century, a time of political upheaval and cultural flourishing. Artists deployed their brushes as weapons or climbed the barricades themselves. So did the Dutch Ary Scheffer, who soon became one of Paris' most famous painters. His work still hangs in the Louvre's gallery of honor. Together with French artists such as Eugène Delacroix and Théodore Géricault, he fought for freedom and equality; the ideals of the French Revolution of 1789.

In addition to a number of art-historical essays by experts from the Netherlands and France, philosopher Maarten Doorman reflects on the meaning of Romanticism today. The publication also includes a catalogue section with an overview of the exhibition. This makes the publication a standard work on the position of Ary Scheffer within French Romanticism.

Quirine van der Meer Mohr is a Master’s student (University of Utrecht) who has prepared catalogue entries on Turner’s Dutch sketchbooks for J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours. As of 2018 she is Curator of 19th-Century Art at the Dordrechts Museum.

8 Foreword Femke Hameetman 10 Introduction Quirine van der Meer Mohr LIBERTÉ! Ary Scheffer and the elusiveness of French Romanticism Sanne Baar 16 Timeline Quirine van der Meer Mohr 20 BETWEEN COLOUR AND LINE Ary Scheffer and French Romanticpainting Mayken Jonkman 40 THE PATH TO SUCCESS Ary Scheffer and fame Gaëlle Rio 52 ARY SCHEFFER: AT THE HEART OF ROMANTIC LIFE Bruno Chenique 62 ARY SCHEFFER AND THÉODORE GÉRICAULT A fraternity of Romantic citizens Stéphanie Deschamps-Tan 78 ARY SCHEFFER AND THE HOUSE OF ORLÉANS The alliance of art with friendship Maarten Doorman Nina Reid 90 Epilogue ROMANTICISM MAKES EVERYTHING NEW Quirine van der Meer Mohr 98 CATALOGUE 102 The tradition of the classics 110 An eye for the people 118 Struggle for independence 126 Revolution and monarchy 146 Desire for imagination 168 Repentance and religion 180 New landscape painting 189 Notes 197 Literature 203 Personal register 205 About the authors