"In their opening statements, the curators of the Louvre's first monographic show in 30 years, Sébastien Allard and Côme Fabre, fully acknowledge that the common usage of David's work as an educational French history tool can strip him of his dynamism: It is "exploited at will by schoolbooks or advertisements," and his association with Neoclassicism "imprison[s] his image in a cold formalism.""
"It walks viewers through the arc of David's painterly style, including its eventual political usage, demonstrating the indispensability of academic art history as an analytical tool. It also demonstrates the fundamental importance of artistic style in transmitting a message - form, rather than just content - the very heart of art. David himself seemed keenly aware of this from the start, cycling through competing styles at the time."
The Louvre mounts its first monographic show on Jacques-Louis David in 30 years, assembling exceptional loans including three versions of the 1793 painting "Death of Marat." Curators Sébastien Allard and Côme Fabre note that common uses of David's work in schoolbooks and advertising can strip his work of dynamism and confine his image within a cold Neoclassical formalism. The exhibition traces David’s shifting painterly styles, from Fragonard-like bright pastels to Poussin-inspired austerity, and highlights how form and artistic style transmit political messages. Comparative displays of similar subjects illuminate stylistic choices and the value of academic art-historical analysis.
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