The Lion Hunt
From the picture by Ferdinand-Victor-Eugene Delacroix.
...introduction continued; FERDINAND-VICTOR-EUGENE DELACROIX, the chief of the Romantic school, was born at Charenton, near Paris, in 1799, and died in 1863. With Gericault, he was, for a while, in the studio of Guerin, where he threw himself with ardor into the study of the figure and the antique, and while he was still under the teaching of the painter of the "Dido and Eneas" he produced the "Dante and Virgil," in which there is no vestige of the classicism in which his master flattered himself, as did all the men of David's circle, that he was steeped. The "Dante and Virgil" was as distinct a note in the Romantic chorus as Victor Hugo's "Ernani" and roused as strenuous an opposition. Still, the promise of power in Delacroix was recognized, and Gros offered to take him into his studio, but Delacroix declined. "It is probable," says Mr. Henley, "that he thought Guerin, who was only a good sound Academical draughtsman, a better master than Gros, whose manner was more personal, and whose talent had certain analogies with his own." He did not isolate himself, nor did he fear that in seeking instruction from others he was in danger of weakening his own individuality. He studied with Gericault, nine years his senior, with Bonington and Paul Huet, both younger than himself; he was enthusiastic over Rubens, and studied with Barye in the Jardin des Plantes; a strong relationship is revealed between these men, whether we study the larger groups or the single figures. The two subjects by Delacroix, which we copy, the "Lion Hunt" and... continued... |
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