Chapter 1324: Arrogant Napoleon
? Approaching six o'clock in the afternoon, after looking at the many important paintings of the French Oil Painting Museum, Ye Tian and the others finally came to the most important painting in the exhibition hall and began to stop and admire this famous painting.
This painting is the "Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I", one of the most important works of the Louvre. It has been displayed in the Louvre from the day it was born and never allowed to leave.
"The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I" is an oil painting by the famous French painter and founder of neoclassicism Jacques Louis David between 1805 and 1807.
Jacques Louis David was the most important French painter before and after the French Revolution, and was also Napoleon's court painter. He painted many famous paintings praising Napoleon's great achievements.
At the same time, he is also the darling of the Louvre and one of the painters with the most paintings in the Louvre!
From the big gallery to the French oil painting gallery, Ye Tian and the others have seen no less than 20 David's paintings along the way, including world famous paintings such as "The Oath of the Brothers of Horace" and "The Mediation of the Sabine Women".
In this "The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I", David used his own paintbrush to truly record the king's coronation ceremony held in Notre Dame de Paris in 1804, which is of great historical significance.
This is a masterpiece, the oil painting is very large, about 9.3 meters wide and 6.1 meters high. The painting area is more than 50 square meters. It occupies a whole wall in the exhibition hall, which is very shocking!
In addition to the size, there are more than 150 characters in this painting. Each character has a different costume, posture and expression. Each character is painted very vividly and vividly!
The complex scene of the coronation ceremony, the light and shadow effects that many characters should have, and the grasp of complex color levels all determine that this is a huge oil painting of extremely high difficulty!
From accepting Napoleon’s commission, going to Notre Dame de Paris to observe the coronation ceremony, making a panoramic model of the coronation ceremony, starting to draft, until starting to paint.
In order to complete this masterpiece, David has spent more than two years and nearly three years!
As soon as this painting appeared, it immediately caused a huge sensation. Napoleon was very satisfied, and he collected it and displayed it in his own palace, the Louvre!
At the same time, this masterpiece has become David's most famous masterpiece and an unsurpassable peak of neoclassicism!
In the center of the painting, Napoleon, wearing purple velvet and a gorgeous cloak, has already put on the crown. His hands are holding the small crown, ready to wear it on the head of Queen Josephine who is kneeling in front of him.
The purple-red velvet cloak behind Josephine was carried by two aristocratic women. Behind Napoleon, the Pope Pius VII was seated. His posture and expression looked rather helpless, and he could only acquiesce to the scene in front of him.
The whole painting is very solemn and grand. There are more than one hundred and fifty characters in the painting, and each character is depicted with a precise portrait, meticulous and very vivid!
Especially Napoleon and Josephine, regardless of their appearance, movements, expressions, and even the embroidery on their clothing, they can withstand close observation with a high-power magnifying glass, and almost no flaws can be found.
The people around Napoleon and Josephine included court dignitaries, ministers, generals, officials, ladies, cardinals, and envoys from various countries.
Above the painting, Napoleon’s mother Maria La Molino sits on a golden throne, watching the coronation ceremony taking place condescendingly and smiling.
In fact, this character was added by David on his own initiative!
Because of some disputes between Napoleon and his brother Lucien, Napoleon's mother, who was on Lucien's side, did not participate in Napoleon's coronation ceremony!
Although this was David's self-assertion, Napoleon was very grateful to David. His actions undoubtedly made the painting more perfect and beautified the image of Napoleon.
In addition, David also painted himself into this masterpiece, in the corner of the stand upstairs, very inconspicuous.
It can be said that this "The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I" is a meticulous work of the painter David's life, giving full play to David's outstanding ability in sketching and color sketching!
The characters in the painting have both form and spirit, and the colors obey the overall concept. The pictures are glittering and magnificent, fully expressing the strong texture of the characters' clothes and the environment in the temple.
Since the Renaissance, the rigor of classicist painting has reached such a level, which can be said to be unsurpassed among the painters of the time!
After standing in front of this painting and carefully admiring it for two or three minutes, everyone just woke up from the shock.
Immediately afterwards, Betty whispered with emotion:
"Wow! This painting is not only huge in size, but the scene of the coronation ceremony is even bigger and shocking! Although the previous "The Wedding in Cana" is larger in size, its visual impact is not as good as this one!"
Ye Tian turned to look at Betty, then smiled and whispered:
"The reason for this difference is mainly due to the subject matter. Although "The Wedding of Cana" is larger in size and has many characters, it is only a wedding after all!
This "The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I" is different. It depicts a very important historical event and the coronation ceremony of the king. Naturally, the two cannot be compared.
Coupled with Napoleon’s great fame and neo-classical style, this "Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I" brings a shocking effect, which is obviously stronger than "The Wedding of Cana".
As soon as the voice fell, Anderson on the other side interjected:
"Steven, tell everyone about this painting. This painting is called "The Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I." Why is it that Napoleon crowned Queen Josephine?
The Pope sitting behind Napoleon looks more like a guest, rather than coming to Paris to crown Napoleon. Is there any story? "
Ye Tian nodded lightly, and then began to explain the world famous painting.
"To appreciate this painting, one must understand the background of its birth. After Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor in November 1804, in order to consolidate his throne, he decided to hold a coronation ceremony.
As the emperor of France, Napoleon, who once ravaged Italy madly, let the then Pope Pius VII come to Paris personally to crown him with an extremely arrogant attitude.
Napoleon’s purpose is very clear, that is, to use the great religious appeal of the Pope Pius VII to let the French and European people recognize his ‘legitimate status’.
During the coronation ceremony, Napoleon refused to kneel in front of the Pope and let Pius VII crown himself. He took the crown directly and put it on his head to complete his self-coronation!
Later, when painting the "Coronation Ceremony of Napoleon I", the painter David painstakingly chose the second half of the scene where the emperor crowned the queen in order to avoid this embarrassing scene.
In this way, it not only highlighted Napoleon's central position on the screen ~www.wuxiaspot.com~, and did not embarrass the Pope, but also maintained the legitimacy of the coronation ceremony. Everyone was happy.
However, David is still playing tricks here. Take a closer look at the expressions and movements of Pope Pius VII. His expression looks very depressed, and he dares not speak.
Looking at the **** that he stretched forward, the direction pointed to is Napoleon's back. Based on the situation at the time, it is speculated that Pope Pius VII could curse Napoleon in his heart! "
"Hahaha"
There was a chuckle at the scene, and Betty and Anderson both laughed, one by one, very happy.
Several visitors who were closer were also amused by Ye Tian's explanation, very happy.
When the laughter subsided, Ye Tian continued to explain the world famous painting to Betty and the others. It was still very professional, vivid and extremely exciting!
While explaining, he also secretly turned on perspective and began to quickly scan this world-famous painting, hoping to discover some surprising secrets!
