Edouard Manet Exhibit Explores Future of Christian Art

"The Dead Christ with Angels" (1864) by Edouard Manet

FRANCE - Stéphane Guégan, curator of “Manet: the Man Who Invented Modernity” at the Musée d’Orsay, is promising a radical reassessment of one of France’s most influential 19th-century artists: “I didn’t want to organise a traditional retrospective; I’m tired of old-fashioned heroic celebrations of this kind. Guégan said that the show stresses the artist’s intention to be a history painter, and a painter of the Salon. His painting addressed directly the main concerns of the modern human condition: action, sex and death,” he added. There are nine sec­tions, ­in­clud­ing “Impressionism Trap­ped”, “1879: A Turning Point”, and “The [Thomas] Couture School”. And which section will have the most impact? “I really hope that the public will react strongly to section three, ‘On the Future of Christian Art’, where I’ve assembled the best religious paintings. I’ll be pleased if the visitors understand how important these works were to him. It was not just about challenging the Spanish old masters in this field. Despite the fact that he no longer believed in God, he intended to convey a true metaphysical dimension within them,” said Guégan. Works on show include "The Dead Christ with Angels," 1864, on loan from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The show, sponsored by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, will not tour. [Source: Art Newspaper]