Gustave Moreau: L'Assembleur De Reves 1826-1898

by Pierre-Louis Mathieu

Moreau's life, although the painter himself did not believe so, casts a singular light on a work in which he was far more involved personally that he he is one of the forerunners and leading exponents of the symbolist trend that prevailed in the late nineteenth century. This movement actually defined itself by the projection onto the canvas of inner sentiments, often those of the artist himself, and which an accurate knowledge of his biography allows us to better understand, a century after his death, now that the restrictions he imposed on his first biographers have given way to time and that the private apartments conserved in the heart of his museum he had so carefully arranged for posterity have been opened to the public. It is now permitted and possible to present what is known and after all quite a lot is known about the life of the one who called himself the worker assembler of dreams. Since his doctoral thesis at the Sorbonne in 1976, the author has proven to be the best expert on the work and personality of Gustave Moreau, about whom he has written many books translated in several languages. Author of the guidebook of the Musee Gustave Moreau and of the catalogue of his drawings, he also published the painter's writings.

Genres: Art

Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a handy timeline of major events in Gustave Moreau's life including mentions of his friends, collectors, and students and vivid color reproductions of many of his works. It's a quick read and would definitely enhance a visit to the Moreau Museum. The book ends abruptly with the opening of the Museum which the painter had left to the French state. Some mention of the public reception of the final opening of the museum would have been welcome.

The book includes some short quotations from Moreau in the form of notes and correspondence, and some quotes from reviews about his work from writers including Zola and Huysmans. His romantic life and personal feelings are touched on as well. The juiciest material comes in short nuggets and leaves the reader wanting more. This book could certainly point a potential Moreau scholar in the right direction - one could seek out the full text of certain letters and reviews. However, there is no bibliography. There is an index of included artworks.

[Patrice-loup Rifaux · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cette petite biographie de Gustave Moreau a le mérite de présenter avec clarté les rapports du peintre avec ses maîtres anciens, ses contemporains et les institutions culturelles de son temps. Elle permet de saisir l'étonnante force de travail de Gustave Moreau et surtout son incroyable exigence de ce que devait être chacune de ses œuvres, exigence si difficile à satisfaire que leur achèvement ne pouvait être atteint.
Les nombreuses reproductions d'oeuvres aident à la compréhension - malgré le format réduit du livres et sont utiles pour préparer une visite du musée.
Mais il manque à cette biographie l'essentiel : elle ne donne aucune clef pour comprendre l'œuvre. On aurait aimé, par exemple à travers l'analyse de deux ou trois tableaux, comprendre comment lire ces peintures, leurs symboliques. On aurait aimé un chapitre sur le symbolisme, ses manifestations picturales, littéraires et sociétales.