(In the Museum at Versailles)
This picture possesses a curious interest because it shows in what a
picturesque manner Gérôme could execute a painting officially ordered.
He received the commission in 1865, through the Imperial Household. He
has rendered with much felicity all the pompous and highly coloured
aspect of the scene, very effective in the sumptuous setting of the
Salle des Fêtes at Fontainebleau.]
Although it is some years since he passed away, Gérôme has left behind
him living memories among his friends and pupils, many of whom
have in their turn become masters. Both as man and as artist he was
and still continues to be profoundly regretted, independently of all
divergences of opinion, method, and temperament.
A master of oriental lore, a curious and subtle antiquarian, a
chronicler of ancient and modern life, rigorous at times, but more
often distinguished for his charm and delicacy,--such is Gérôme as he
has revealed himself to us through the medium of his abundant works.
Whether he paints us the men of the Desert and the almas of Egypt,
or shows us the gladiators of the Circus, the death of Caesar, the
leisure hours of Frederick II, the dreams of a Bonaparte, or takes us
to the _Winter Duel in the Bois de Boulogne after the Masked Ball_, a
picture that achieved much popularity, Gérôme never fails to catch and
hold attention by startling contrasts of colour combined with a fine
accuracy of line work.
But what matter the means through which an effect is sought if they
prove successful both in the general impression produced by the work as
a whole and in the charm of the separate details,--in other words, if
the result justifies the effort?
Effort, in Gérôme's case, meant literally a valiant and noble
persistence. He was ceaselessly in search of something new. In spite
of assured fame, he never repainted the same subject. During the
later years of his life, his ambition was to be at the same time an
illustrious painter and a sculptor of recognized merit; and in this
he succeeded. His attempt to revive, after a fashion of his own, the
precious lost art of antique sculpture, although greeted with a wide
divergence of opinions, remains a noteworthy achievement.
On the eve of his eightieth year and abrupt decease, Gérôme still
laboured with the ardour and the splendid faith of youth. He sets an
encouraging example, as fine and as stimulating as the best of his
splendid pictures.