Grand genre and petit genre
in the second half of the 18th century
The history of French painting has often been described as that of an inexorable
trend towards neo-classicism
beginning in 1760-1770. The actual situation, however, was more complex.
Various superintendents in charge of Bâtiments actively encouraged
historical painting to match the spirit prevailing in Europe at the time,
particularly Angivillier, who occupied this position from 1774 to 1789.
This undivided domination by historical subject matter soon produced the
opposite effect: genre painters or portraitists started to become historical
painters and gained a certain degree of success in the public eye. In some
cases historical paintings became sentimental, affected works that had nothing
to do with the austerity sought after by the upper echelons. The Salons
became an institution where reception pieces were shown immediately and
commented on heatedly. This new arena for debate encouraged diversity of
style. Enlèvement de Déjanire par le centaure Nessus
by Lagrenée l'Aîné shows just how strong the influence
of 17th century Italian painting remained in 1755. Historical
painting is represented by reception pieces such as Hector exposé
sur les rives du Scamandre by Deshays or Philémon
et Baucis donnant l'hospitalité à Jupiter et Mercure by
Jean Baptiste Restout whose sketch is kept
by the musée des Augustins.
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