Some 40 miles away from Paris, Barbizon, a small hamlet of farmers and coal traders bordering the Fontenaibleau forest, became the birthplace of a new form of art: landscape painting.
It was only in 1925 that art historians discovered the importance of the painters belonging to the school of Barbizon thanks to a book written by Prosper Dorbec, "The art of landscape painting in France".
The introduction of lanscapes in paintings was a major phenomenon and those artists who were the pioneers in that new form of art were issued from the people who fought for equal rights during the French Revolution from which originated the bourgeois society of the 19th Century. These painters fought against established institutions and were the standard bearers of a new kind of freedom since they moved away from traditional trends.
Camille Corot Rocks in the Fontainbleau forest
While the bourgeois society marked its predominence between 1830 and 1870 , the Barbizon painters tried to find a new way of blossoming their inspiration through nature as well as to find a new soul and identity.
These painters made a complete inventory of nature in finding models among Dutch painters of the 17th Century and British from the 18th and 19 th Century. They also rebelled against the French Academy which was controlled by representatives of the bourgeois society.
Taking the risk of being rejected, facing difficult living conditions, they wanted above all to paint what pleased them. They thus turned their attention to landscape painting, a genre which had been quite neglected in France.
Achille Michallon, Corot's mentor was among those who were the first to follow that path and contrary to certain painters who painted Italian landscapes at the end of the 18th Century, these pioneers instilled in their works a language and a new spirit. They were seduced also by realism and turned their backs to romanticism while seeking a pathetic approach.
Georges Michel The storm, circa 1820-1830
Some 40 miles away from Paris, Barbizon, a small hamlet of farmers and coal traders bordering the Fontenaibleau forest, became the birthplace of a new form of art: landscape painting.
It was only in 1925 that art historians discovered the importance of the painters belonging to the school of Barbizon thanks to a book written by Prosper Dorbec, "The art of landscape painting in France".
The introduction of lanscapes in paintings was a major phenomenon and those artists who were the pioneers in that new form of art were issued from the people who fought for equal rights during the French Revolution from which originated the bourgeois society of the 19th Century. These painters fought against established institutions and were the standard bearers of a new kind of freedom since they moved away from traditional trends.
Camille Corot Rocks in the Fontainbleau forest
While the bourgeois society marked its predominence between 1830 and 1870 , the Barbizon painters tried to find a new way of blossoming their inspiration through nature as well as to find a new soul and identity.
These painters made a complete inventory of nature in finding models among Dutch painters of the 17th Century and British from the 18th and 19 th Century. They also rebelled against the French Academy which was controlled by representatives of the bourgeois society.
Taking the risk of being rejected, facing difficult living conditions, they wanted above all to paint what pleased them. They thus turned their attention to landscape painting, a genre which had been quite neglected in France.
Achille Michallon, Corot's mentor was among those who were the first to follow that path and contrary to certain painters who painted Italian landscapes at the end of the 18th Century, these pioneers instilled in their works a language and a new spirit. They were seduced also by realism and turned their backs to romanticism while seeking a pathetic approach.
Georges Michel The storm, circa 1820-1830
The leaders of the school of Barbizon were: Georges Michel, Théodore Rousseau, Jean-François Millet and Corot. With them farmers no longer formed the elements of a decor but became true actors in their paintings. Millet devoted himself to farming scenes while Courbet showed a keen interest in workers, grave-diggers, woodmen or poachers. There was therefore a real description of the working class through many works
Gustave Courbet Casseurs de pierres, 1849
which glorified the hard work of farmers and their likes. Millet was not really an artist advocating some kind of revolution but originally a farmer attracted by the land which he wanted to depict so as to demonstrate that one could think deeply about the people who were living in the countryside. Courbet, who was rather more a Marxist before Marxism even existed, was fighting for more social justice.
Most of the painters of the school of Barbizon were rejected from the major Paris Salons of their time and exuded some kind of revolt against the industrial society in their works. Rousseau, Daubigny tried to show the true countryside in their paintings while polluting cities were mushrooming not far away, while rivers became scarce and while forests were cut by new roads.
In that sense they proved to be true ecologists trying to find some fresh air and open panoramas far from the urban chaos.
Jean-François Millet
Théodor Rousseau Les chênes en forêt de Fontainbleau
Strangely enough the French public was not attracted by the paintings of the Barbizon artists while these came quickly much in demand in the U.S, in England or in Russia.
The other founders of this school were Narcisse Diaz, Daubigny, Troyon and Dupré but these painters were supplanted by the Impressionist artists at the end of the 19th Century. As a result their movement only lasted 45 years between 1830 and 1875.
Before evoking these legendary painters,such as Théodore Rousseau, Jean-François Millet or Camille Corot, it seems essential to stress the role of Georges Michel, born 1763, who showed his interest in the Montmartre and the St Denis plains landscapes after giving up a career as a classical painter.
Much attracted by Dutch landcsape painters of the 17th Century, Michel was first influenced by Demarne at the end of the 18th Century and painted landscapes which later inspired many artists from the school of Barbizon. Before him, Lazare Bruandet, who had sought refuge in the Fontainebleau forest after murdering his mistress, had had the occasion of painting some admirable scenes which, with those of Lantara, were among the first to have ever been produced in that area.
Constant Troyon Landscape near Paris, circa 1849
Landscape painting had already met some tremendous success with many English painters at the end of the 18th Century and it was in London that Gericault and Delacroix discovered the works of Gainsborough, Constable and Turner. After them came Bonington, a great master who however died young. However, the determining event was the Salon of 1824 where Constable exhibited three of his paintings.
His technique left its mark on many French artists, notably Gericault and Delacroix who soon became interested in the representation of light and it is also true that Constable impressed Troyon, Courbet, Daubigny and many others.
Paul Huet, another painter drew their attention as he had already painted landscapes at 13 et well before Boudin, had played with the luminous effect of the Honfleur sky. Huet met Bonington in 1819 and both artists worked together during a certain period of time. However, Huet had a more romantic soul and was not a naturalist painter frankly speaking. That is why he never came so much close to the Barbizon artists.
Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot was among those who managed to swerve away from romanticism, a genre which he had in practice during his trips to Italy until the early 1830's. He had afterwards an enormous influence over many painters, such as Eugène Lavieille, Jules Breton, Paul-Désiré Trouillebert, Léon Lhermitte, Antoine Chintreuil, François Louis Français, Constant Dutilleux and Henri Harpignies.
Narcisse Virgile Diaz de la Pena Clearing in the Fontainbleau forest
Corot did not only work in Fontainebleau, which in fact was rather the base of Barye, Millet, Diaz, Troyon, Dupré or Rousseau and at one time that of Daumier. Still, he did influence much the Barbizon artists.
Barbizon saw the opening of its first inn in 1822, the "auberge Ganne" which hosted so many artists who lived in this small hamlet which seemed at the other end of the world. It was there that Théodore Rousseau landed there in 1833 before deciding to stay in this bucolic place during many years.
As soon as the year 1836, Barbizon became a kind of pilgrimage spot for many artists, notably Jules Dupré, Constant Troyon and Narcisse Diaz de la Pena who had lost a leg at 12 ans after being bitten by an adder in the Meudon forest .Landscape painting then started to become much popular in 1840 after the arrival in Barbizon of Courbet and Barye who later turned to sculpture.
Paul Huet Study for the oak tree "le Clovis" in the Fontainebleau forest
In 1849 Barbizon saw the arrival of Charles Jacques and Jean-François Millet, a painter somewhat detested by the bourgeois society whereas Paris had been facing another revolution the previous year.
It was Jacque, who had followed Diaz de la Pena's advice who induced Millet to accompany him to this area. Millet, born in 1814 in the Manche region, was the son of a farmer who had decided to become an artist.
Admiring Delacroix, he studied with Delaroche and was soon nicknamed the "man of the forest" by his fellow-pupils. he first painted genre scenes and nudes and his encounter with Jacque soon had some deep influence over his destiny.
In 1847, he started to paint workers and farming scenes before coming to Barbizon where the environment much suited him. There he felt a farmer again and glorified his likes with great passion.
Millet, who was not involved in any of the revolutionary movements that occurred in France, remained 27 years in Barbizon where he used to scour the forest almost every day. He died there after becoming with Théodore Rousseau and Charles-François Daubigny one of the leaders of the school of Barbizon which had also in its ranks painters like Claude d'Aligny, Auguste Allongé, Auguste Anastasi, Ion Andreescu, Léon Belly, Edouard Bertin, Rosa Bonheur, Jacques Raymond Brascassat, Jules Breton, Louis Cabat, Alexandre Calame, Charles Ferdinand Ceramano, Léonce Chabry, Jean Ferdinand Chaigneau, Eugène Ciceri, César et Xavier de Cock, Giovanni Costa, Isidore Dagnan, Karl Daubigny, Alexandre Decamps, Alexandre Defaux, Hippolyte Camille Delpy, Alexandre Desgoffe, Julien Dupré, Victor Dupré, Constant Dutilleux, Camille Flers, Georges Gassies, Charles-Jean Georget, Nicolae Grigorescu, Adolphe Hervier, William Hunt, George Inness, Godefroy Jadin, Eugène Jettel, Alfred de Knyf, Emile Charles Lambinet, Eugène Lavieille, Gabriel Hippolyte Lebas, Paul Louchet, Camille Magnus, Emile van Marcke de Lummen, François Nazon, Laszlo de Paal, Léon Richet, Edmond de Schampheleer, David Sutter, Léon Tanzi, Etienne Maxime Vallée, Paul Vernon, Alexandre René Véron, Louis Watelin and Félix Ziem.
One should also stress the role of Daubigny who had so much influence over Impressionist painters while Millet much impressed Van Gogh. Daubigny was above all the painter of ponds and rivers and was one of the first artists to have a small boat fitted as a floating studio.
It was in 1857 that Millet exhibited his painting "The Gleaners" at the Paris Salon. Two years later he achieved his famous work "l'Angélus".
Influenced by Poussin and Courbet, Millet was interested in showing the plains seen from Barbizon as well as farmers at work. He used to say that he was only seeing the sky and the land separated by the horizon and tried to reconcile man with nature through hard work. With the years, his style became more vaporous, his forms more simple and his palette clearer probably because he had achieved fame and had become a rich man.
The school of Barbizon was also proud to have Daumier in its ranks and this painter was often compared with Millet concerning his style and his drawing. Daumier showed a keen interest in the rural world and some of his works can be mistaken with those of Millet.
Millet became much admired in the U.S at the end of his life as well as other painters from Barbizon whose works were bought in quantities by many American collectors. Still, the major feat of the school of Barbizon was its influence over the pioneers of Impressionnism such as, Monet, Sisley, Bazille and Renoir who went to work in Barbizon in 1863 as well as Pissarro in 1865.
Georges Michel Hunter and his dog near a mill
It was in this area that Monet notably found an ideal site for his "Déjeuner sur l'herbe". Then Cézanne and Seurat came there in the early 1880's while Van Gogh became much inspired by Millet's prints to produce many drawings and copies. With the death of Millet at 61 on January 20th 1875 and that of Corot and Barye the same year, the School of Barbizon found it hard to survive. Diaz died in 1876, Courbet in 1877, Daubigny in 1878 while Jacque and Jules Dupré remained the last leaders of that movement. Meanwhile, Impressionist was paving the way to its success at the expense of the legendary school of Barbizon which was forgotten until the early 1920's.
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