art_criticism

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The Ignorant Art Historian: View of Notre Dame

By Hal Foster

https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2026/04/28/the-ignorant-art-historian-view-of-notre-dame/

Notre-Dame de Paris at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/subject/12945

#Books #Art_criticism #Culture

Vue de Notre-Dame, par Henri Matisse, 1914.

A semi-abstract view dominated by blue, with bold black outlines suggesting a window and the cathedral beyond. A single green form — likely a treetop — anchors the spare composition.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vue_de_Notre-Dame,_par_Henri_Matisse.jpg

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1y

How Gustave Moreau’s Mystical Paintings Defined the Symbolist Movement

Gustave Moreau was the defiant visionary whose mystical paintings shaped a groundbreaking new movement in France and beyond.

by Kelsey Spicuzza

https://www.thecollector.com/gustave-moreau-symbolist-movement/

Symbolism in literature at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/subject/7864

#Books #Literature #Symbolism #Art_criticism

L'Apparition (1876), watercolor, 105 x 72 cm., Musée d'Orsay

by Gustave Moreau

Gustave Moreau’s L'Apparition is a haunting and richly symbolic watercolor painting that vividly captures a moment from the biblical story of Salome. In this striking scene, Salome stands transfixed before the vision of the severed head of John the Baptist, which hovers, radiant and bleeding, in the air before her.

Salome is adorned in elaborate, orientalized robes and jewelry that shimmer with color, light, and texture—an opulent reflection of her allure and the decadent atmosphere of Herod’s court. Her expression is one of awe and dread as she gazes upon the miraculous apparition.

The head of John the Baptist floats above a luminous nimbus, glowing with supernatural intensity, contrasting with the dark, richly patterned architectural setting behind.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Moreau#/media/File:The_Apparition,_Gustave_Moreau_1876.jpg

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