The history of French art covers a huge historical period, from the era of antiquity to our time.
France is an amazing country, which is characterized by mystery and sophistication, brilliance and sophistication, sublimity and a special craving for everything beautiful. And the history of the formation of its unique, which has become the standard, of such a diverse and unique art is no less surprising than the state itself.
Prerequisites for the Formation of the Frankish Kingdom
To understand the features of the emergence and development of French art, you need to take an excursion into the history of the ancient period, when the territory of the modern French state was part of the Great Roman Empire. In the 4th century, active movements of barbarian tribes began from the banks of the Rhine to the borders of the empire. Their attacks and periodic invasions of Roman lands, which were subjected to ruin, greatly undermined the state of Latin. And in 395, the Roman Empire itself was divided between the sons of the current emperor in two: Theodosius bequeathed the richest eastern part of his territories to his eldest son Arkady, and transferred the western one to his youngest son - Honorius. The division of the Great Roman Empire into parts weakened the already fragile Roman state and made it more vulnerable to external enemies.
The territory of modern France was part of the western part of the former Great Roman Empire. A strong blow in 410 was inflicted on Rome by the Visigoth troops, led by Allaric. The last Roman emperor of a weak state hid in Ravenna, abandoning eternal Rome. It was there that the army of Odoacr overtook him - one of the leading military leaders of the Visigoth tribe. It is with this event, held in 476, that the final fall of the Roman Empire is associated. In the conquered lands as a result of the Great Migration that began, barbarian states began to arise. In the 5th century, a state of the Franks arose in part of Gaul.
Frankish state and the development of French art
Franks are a group of tribes that from ancient times settled along the banks of the Rhine in its lower reaches and off the coast of the Baltic Sea. The founder of the first Frankish kingdom in Europe was the young leader of the Franks, Hlodwig Meroving, who defeated the army of the Roman governor in Galia at the Battle of Soissons and captured the territories subject to him. In the new territories, he resettled his associates, the Franks, endowed with land allotments, carried out a number of state reforms both in the field of public administration and in the judicial and legislative sphere, introducing a unique document - “Salic truth”, compiled on the basis of tribal orders salic francs. In addition, particular attention was paid by Clovis to the choice of faith. The adoption of Christianity not only strengthened the new state, but also influenced the formation of Frankish art.
After the Merovingian dynasty became lazy in management affairs, life in the kingdom became increasingly difficult. The nobility captured the royal lands. The permissiveness in the management of the nobility by its allotments and peasants flourished. The impoverishment of the population increased. In the eighth century, an external threat loomed from nomadic Arab tribes. Power was taken over by one of the governors of the last Merovingian king, Karl Martell. He carried out a series of reforms that helped strengthen the state and defeat the Arabs. And the son of Karl Martella Pippin Short was elected on the council of the nobility the new king of the Franks. This choice was confirmed by the pope. And the first Frankish emperor was the son of Pippin Short Karl, for whom the nickname the Great was fixed in history. It was Karl that the Frankish Empire owed a special stage to the flourishing of culture and art, which is called the Carolingian Revival.
The art of the "original" francs
If you understand the features of the birth and formation of the Frankish state, then it becomes clear and the fate of the cultural heritage, which was from ancient times on the Frankish territories. It was mainly the development of ancient civilization: bridges, residential and temple architecture, sculpture and literature, theater and arts and crafts. However, Christian clergy did not consider it necessary to preserve these cultural riches, but used the part that could be adapted to worship and the life of the layman. Thus, worship in Christian churches took place in Latin, and church books were written in the same language.
It was necessary to use the architectural finds of Antiquity in order to begin the construction of temples and monasteries, the use of knowledge of astronomy helped to calculate the dates of the church calendar, which in the Middle Ages declared the life of the whole kingdom. The Franks also adapted the education system of the late Roman Empire to their needs. It is noteworthy that the complex of educational subjects studied in Frankish schools was called the "Seven Liberal Arts". What kind of art were we talking about? The so-called trivium included the science of the word: grammar, rhetoric and dialectics. The quadrivium included number sciences: arithmetic, geometry, music as a calculation of musical intervals and astronomy.
In the arts and crafts prevailed the traditions of barbaric creativity, which was characterized by the use of plant and animal ornaments and images of monsters or creatures, which in reality do not exist and often have a pretty frightening appearance, as the main motives. This type of art is called terratological or monstrous.
The Art and Culture of the Carolingian Renaissance
The reign of Charlemagne is characterized by an unprecedented rise in culture. One of the reasons for this is the very personality of the emperor - a well-educated and highly cultured person. He spoke and read fluently in Latin, understood Greek, was fond of theology and philosophy. One of the unique architectural structures of this period was the palace church in Aachen, amazing in its artistic design.
The art of creating manuscript books also developed: they were written in almost calligraphic handwriting and decorated with beautiful miniatures. Among the books were both theological works and annals - a time-wise record of events taking place in the Frankish Empire over the years.
The empire opened schools focused on primary and elite education. The creator of the first was a companion of Carla Alcuin. And the elite school opened in Aachen united scientists, the emperor’s family and the entire court of Charlemagne. The school, called the "Court Academy", conducted philosophical conversations, studied the Bible and the culture of Antiquity, made riddles and composed poems. And one of the members of the Academy wrote the first secular biography, "The Life of Charlemagne."
It was during the Carolingian Renaissance that the foundations were laid for the preservation and revival of the traditions of ancient culture and the basis for the further development of the Franks culture.
The formation of France as a state
During the reign of the descendants of Charlemagne, the empire he created was increasingly weakened. When the empire was divided between the sons of Karl, its Western part went to the eldest son Lothar. And his descendants continued to weaken the fragmented state. The empire has fallen. The last of the Carolings finally lost influence and were deposed. The nobility transferred the right to rule to the then powerful Count of Paris Hugo Capet. It was the eastern part of the former Frankish Empire that came to be called France. Thanks to the rule of the Capetians, the new state not only revived, but also received new opportunities for its development, including cultural.
Folk art of medieval France
In the theater and music of the medieval period, a number of changes also occurred in comparison with the antique. The Christian church considered the actors to be accomplices of the devil and in every way pursued the artistic fraternity. As a result, the theater as a mass phenomenon ceased to exist, the construction of theaters and stadiums gradually fell into a state of ruin, and the actors began to form vagrant troupes and played for the people at intersections, fairs and squares. Mobile groups of universal actors - histrions - were less convenient object for persecution by the church and authorities, subordinate to it and pursuing their goals in connection with the particular orientation of the work of histrions and troubadours - wandering musicians. A special group consisted of vagantas - former students or monks who owned versification and the basics of musical art, who wandered alone along the roads and in their works or sang about carnal love, or denounced a decaying church and a rotten state.
Three areas of development of medieval art
9/10 of the population of medieval France were peasants. Therefore, the main culture of the state can be defined as peasant. The medieval peasant spent most of the day in labors on the land of the feudal lord. But this does not mean that he did not have the need and time to communicate with culture and art. Basically it was song and dance, competition in strength and dexterity. A special place in communication with art was occupied by viewing performances of histrions. Oral folk art also developed. The wisdom of the people is reflected in folklore: fairy tales, songs, proverbs and sayings. The main theme of the storytellers was the shame of a stupid rich man by a poor but kind poor man, who, as a rule, came from a peasant family. Tales were acutely social: they revealed the vices of society in the sphere of relations between the nobility and the peasantry, and also talked about the plight of the peasants. Legends and ballads were also created, glorifying the exploits of national heroes fighting for the honor and dignity of an ordinary person and against feudal arbitrariness.
The second side of medieval culture and art was the life of cities, the growth and prosperity of which has been observed since the 9th century. The emergence of such a class as the bourgeois was the beginning of the development of bourgeois culture. The skill of artisans quickly improved. The principles of their work and the quality of the created products were modified, many of which are now of high value as masterpieces of decorative and applied art. It is from this time that the word “masterpiece” came into our everyday life. Each master joining the guild fraternity had to demonstrate his skills and make the perfect product. It was a masterpiece. Gradually, a system of interaction and competition of workshops was formed, which initially became a motivator in the development of crafts. However, over time, the workshops began to prevent crafts from developing, as competitors did not want to be outstripped by the most talented craftsmen, and sometimes did not want the secret of the manufacturing process of the product or material for it to fall into the hands of competitors. Often members of the guild fraternity even destroyed inventions, and sometimes harassed their creators.
The third side of medieval culture and art was the existence of a separate world of the aristocracy - the feudal lords. As a rule, all the feudal lords carried military service before the king, being his personal vassals. Smaller feudal lords were vassals of their rulers - barons, counts, etc. Carrying horse military service, they represented such a phenomenon of medieval society as knighthood. Knightly culture was characterized by its own special art. This includes the art of creating knight's arms - volumetric identification marks of a knightly family or an individual knight. Coats of arms were made of expensive materials - gold and silver, enamel and marten fur or squirrel. Each coat of arms was an important historical source and a very valuable work of art.
In addition, in the framework of the knightly culture of boys - future knights - they also taught such arts as singing and dancing, playing musical instruments. From childhood, they were trained in good manners, knew many verses, and many of the knights wrote poetry themselves, dedicating them to the beautiful lady. And of course, it is necessary to recall the unique monuments of medieval architecture - knightly castles built in the Romanesque style, as well as amazing temples built in all cities of France, first in the Romanesque, and later in the Gothic style. The most famous temples are the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris and the Reims Cathedral - the place of coronation of the French monarchs.
French Art: Renaissance
The Renaissance, associated with a new round of interest in ancient cultural heritage and art, originated in sunny Italy in the XIV century. In France, the trends of the Renaissance were reflected in culture and fine art only at the end of the 15th century. But this period lasted longer in France than in Italy: not until the 16th century, but until the 17th century. The rise in the field of culture and art in the French state was associated with the completion of the unification of the country under Louis XI.
The demarcation with the Gothic traditions in the art of France occurred in connection with the frequent trips of the kings to Italy, where they got acquainted with the amazing Italian art of the Renaissance. However, unlike Italy, the art of this period in France was more courtly than folk.
As for the nationality of French art, the remarkable poet in literature was the remarkable poet Francois Rabelais, who created figurative, witty and cheerful poetic works.
If we talk about the visual arts of this period, it should be noted that in theological miniatures and in secular literature embodied realistic trends. The very first artist of this period in the development of French art was Jean Fouquet, who left a huge legacy to posterity in the form of portraits of aristocrats and the royal family, book miniatures, landscapes, diptychs depicting the Madonna.
Margarita of Navarre invited to Renaissance Italian masters to France: Rosso and Primaticcio, who became the founders of the Fontainebleau school - a direction in the French art of painting that arose in the Fontainebleau estate. This trend was based on the principles of mannerism, whose representatives were originally the founders of the school, and was characterized by the use of mythological plots and intricate allegories. There are sources that also name other names of the masters who participated in the design of the Fontainebleau castle: Italians Pellegrino and Juste de Juste, the French Simon Leroy, Claude Badouin, Charles Dorigny, the Flemish Leonard Tirey and others.
In the 16th century, the portrait, painting and pencil genre was actively developing in France. Of particular interest are the works of Jean Clouet, who painted portraits of almost the entire French court.
The sculpture of this period in France is associated with the name of Michel Colombes, who masterfully performed relief paintings and philosophical interpretations of tombstones. Also interesting are the works of Jean Goujon, permeated with special musicality and poetry of images and manner of performance.
The counterpart to the harmonious and ideal in its beauty and grace creativity of Goujon was the work of another sculptor of this period - Germain Pilon. They are akin to their expression and hypertrophy of the transmitted feelings and experiences to the work of expressionists of the XIX century. All his characters are deeply realistic, even naturalistic, dramatic and gloomy.
French art: 17th century
The 16th century was an era of war and devastation for the French state. In the first quarter of the 17th century, power in France strengthened. The process of centralization of power went especially fast under Louis XIII, when Cardinal Richelieu ruled everything in the country. The people groaned under the yoke of the aristocracy and the hardships of daily labor. However, the absolutist monarchy contributed not only to strengthening and increasing the power of France, but also to the fact that during this period the country became one of the leading among other European states. This undoubtedly affected the development and basic trends of culture and art in the country.
The art of France of the 17th century can conditionally be defined as the official court, which was expressed by the pompous and decorative Baroque style.
In contrast to the ceremonial and exaggerated decorative baroque in the art of France, two directions stood out: realism and classicism. The first of them was an appeal to the reflection of real life as it was, without embellishment. Within this area, the everyday genre and portrait, biblical and mythological genres are developing.
Classicism in the art of France primarily reflects the theme of civic duty, the victory of society over the individual, the ideals of reason. They are positioned as opposed to the imperfection of real life, an ideal to which one must strive, sacrificing even personal interests. All this is mainly related to the fine arts of France. The basis for the art of classicism was the tradition of ancient art. And this is most reflected in classic architecture. In addition, it was architecture that was most dependent on the practical interests of the state and was completely subordinate to absolutism.
The period of the XVII century in the French state is characterized by the construction of a large number of city-forming architectural ensembles and palace structures. During this period, secular architecture came to the fore.
If we talk about the reflection of the above trends in art, then we should mention the work of Nicolas Poussin - an amazing representative of the era, whose painting embodied both the generalization of worldview and the indomitable life energy of ancient art.
French art: 18th century
As for the art of France of the XVIII century, this is a separate topic for a long conversation. In short, the art of France of this period was a protest against negative phenomena in public life: absolutism began to decay, the aristocracy led a wasteful lifestyle, parasitizing on other sections of society. The discontent that arose among the masses resulted in a bourgeois revolution, as a result of which a republic was established in France. All this was reflected in the art of France of the 18th century.
The new upsurge of culture was associated with a huge influence on the creativity of the people, which was primarily pronounced in music. Comedy began to play the main role in the theater, the fair theater of masks and the art of opera were actively developing. Fewer artists turned to religious subjects, more and more secular art developed. The French culture of this period was very diverse and saturated with contrasts. The art of realism turned to the disclosure of the human world of different classes: to his feelings and emotions, the everyday side of life, psychological analysis.
19th century art of France
We move on. Let's talk briefly about the art of France of the XIX century. The life of the state of this time is characterized by another round of growing discontent of the people and expressed revolutionary sentiments after the restoration of the French monarchy. The theme of struggle and heroism has become one of the leading in the visual arts. It was reflected in new directions of painting - historicism and romanticism. But there is a struggle with academicism in the visual arts of this period.
The study of the color factor in painting leads to the active development of the landscape genre and to the revision of all systems of French painting.
During this period, decorative and applied art was particularly developed as the most reflecting people's aspirations. Lubok is becoming very popular, which allows using the simplest technique when using satirical images to reveal the vices and problems of society.
In fact, etching becomes a documentary historical source of the era. By etchings, you can study the history of France of the XIX century.
The art of France, as we see, is very multifaceted and diverse and is closely connected with the features of the development of the French state. Each era is a huge block, requiring special disclosure, which is impossible to do in the framework of one article.