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Van Gogh, Gaugin, Cezanne & Beyond Post Impressionism from The Musee D'Orsay
Well this is one of the most diverse collections of paintings ever displayed as a single exhibition at NGA. Some of the works are perhaps not Post Impressionist, nor Impressionist, but no matter they present in a confined space the history of French art, excluding academy styles (despite the protestations of the art world, this was the major art practice of the time), from the 1870s to the 1920s, plus a hint of Belgian, Netherlands art.
On arrival some limitations may become apparent in the external parking areas. There is a considerable amount of construction work going on to expand the gallery... this has no impact on the exhibition, other in making parking a little more difficult than could normally be expected. During the holiday period I'd suggest you pre-purchase tickets to avoid queuing at the entry.
Unfortunately the NGA is persisting with the severe drop lighting that I have previously critisised in the Dega exhibition of 2008. Fortunately the wall colour has been lightened and the impact of this poor lighting method has been reduced. For the general public that are interested in seeing these works the lighting should provide no disadvantage, but for artists wanting to learning from the complete painting... this is very limiting, why we can not have a clear view of the painting in the lighting that they were designed for is beyond me. I'll clearly be going to the Orsay to see the works in full, as their lighting is vastly superior. Perhaps the most unfortunate thing about this is that many of these works rarely see the light of day at the Orsay and this exhibition is the only chance many will get to see them at all.
For some insight into why the collection has been made available see The Art Tribunes interview with Guy Cogeval. Interesting that we and other recipients of the exhibition are largely funding the D'Orsays renovations, or at least balancing the budget.... but if the French can't afford it then perhaps we can take pleasure in helping them out. It would however be nice to see the same level of support being arranged for our own institutions.
Photography is not allowed at the exhibition, surprising as all the works come from a venue that permits photography without flash. The poor lighting would make it difficult to get a good impression of the paintings anyway. The catalog is not expensive at $39.95 and provides good representations of the works at small scale.
The exhibition is divided into five galleries, the first contains works by a number of artists that do not fit a Post Impressionist definition. J.S. Sargeant is represented by a painting of 1890 that borders on a dashed off sketch, idealized beyond the heroic. Albert Besnard also is present with a portrait of 1886, again of heroic proportion, this is a beautifully disappointing work. For those new to my reviews I'd suggest not taking remarks as negative, I'm saying what I feel about the painting and from a painters perspective how they appear to me, I expect to be as disappointed by other peoples work as I am by my own.
Moving to the next gallery we see Divisionist works and Cezanne. Apart from the stylistic development in Divisionism we are struck by the impossibility of producing such work at todays low sale prices. Cezanne always has and continues to disappoint me, a personal taste, I see and find little to impress me in composition, form, observation or pattern. Unlike the moderns (now the equivalent of the old Academy or Salon in art history terms). What ever it is that is seen in his work alludes me and I have no doubt it alludes anyone that has serious respect for art as a communication method.
Van Gogh is represented with a number of works that are of interest as much for the underlying intent of the artist as for the works themselves. I have often wondered what people would think of these works if they were just placed in front of them without the context of the artists name. For a number of works I would have to say that they would draw attention and be found to be something quite different to the artist intent, but of course today they would not get hung at a local exhibition.
The Pont Aven is represented in the next gallery along with Symbolist works and the Nabis. How symbolism has anything to do with Impressionism, Post Impressionism is a touch difficult to follow (impossible is a word better suited here but I'm being polite, it predates Impressionism and has absolutely no interest in depicting the world as a purely physical entity) , coming from an entirely different field of artistic representation and concerns for the inner interpretation of the world. None the less I again welcome seeing some minor works that would otherwise stay in the storage space of the Orsay. There are a number of well known works such as Purvis de Chavannes, The Poor Fisherman and Maurice Denis, Calvary, that remind us of this often forgotten aspect of European art. The D'Orsay has been buying up Symbolist works in recent years, but what we see here are all paintings that have been in the collection for some time. I think it is disappointing to have these works mixed in with Post-Impressionist work, most of them predate even Impressionism as an accepted form of painting.
The final gallery presents Decoration, of which I will say nothing so as to leave the viewer with something to experience for themselves. This is perhaps the least publicised and known aspect of the exhibition.
In 1900 there was an exhibition of the best French Art of the last Decade of the 19th Century shown in Paris. Of the paintings represented in that exhibition none are present in this exhibition. Of the artists present in the 1900 exhibition only one (Besnard) is represented in this exhibition.
At $25 per entry this is not a cheep exhibition to attend. Having to travel a round trip of 1000 kilometers it was a touch costly when adding accommodation and fuel, plus time. In this instance I would say it was worth the cost, despite the poor lighting. I recommend this one to anyone that has the time to go before next April.
author: Neil Miley