In collaboration with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Louvre in Paris will hold a historic exhibition to celebrate Eugène Delacroix—one of the most prolific French painters of all time.
Despite the artist’s prominence, his last significant retrospective dates back to 1963: the centenary year of his death.
The collection will guide visitors through 180 of his works—mostly paintings—charting and paying tribute to the entirety of his career.
From the young artist’s big hits at the Salons of the 1820s to his final, lesser-known, and mysterious religious paintings and landscapes, the exhibition showcases the tension indicative of Delacroix’s work.
That tension derived from the fact Delacroix was an artist who strove for individuality, while aspiring to follow in the footsteps of the 16th and 17th century Flemish and Venetian masters.
The Louvre retrospective aims to answer questions raised by Delacroix’s long, prolific and multifaceted career.
As the leading exponent of Romanticism and an observer of the optical effects of colour, it didn’t take long for Delacroix to solidify his legacy.
As a revered painter and muralist, his application of expressive brushstrokes influenced the work of the impressionists.
Visitors of the collection get a chance to familiarise themselves with this engaging character, whose ardent passion for his work and hunger for fame led him to seek individuality through meaningful art.
The exhibit reminds attendees of Delacroix’s most famous work, Liberty Leading the People (1830)—a stirring image of Parisians taking up arms in the revolution against Charles X.
Perhaps the most significant Delacroix work, this painting evokes some of the most important facets of French history in an iconic oeuvre.
Meanwhile, it will aim to acquaint art lovers with lesser-known religious pieces and poignant landscapes from the artist.
The collection will remain at the Louvre from 29 March until 23 July 2018.
