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Friday, July 13, 2012

The Snake Charmer


The studio was packed with friends and admirers who’d come to celebrate an unappreciated old man, someone who’d long since given up on success and acclaim. Well-wishers raising their glasses to toast Henri Rousseau all shared a secret; the guest of honor was a shameful liar.


Rousseau was a generation older than these new kids on the block, artists like Pablo Picasso. Picasso had lent his studio and arranged the banquet for Rousseau. The Spaniard was one of the few who knew the artist’s real name. Most of those patting the old man on the back referred to him simply as Le Douanier (the customs officer). Even this was a lie, spread by Rousseau himself. He never held the position of customs officer, he’d merely been an underpaid toll collector at one of the gates of Paris.


The banquet thrown for Rousseau took place in 1908 when the artist was sixty-four. He looked older than his years and would be dead in two years. This would be the only time in his life when he would be celebrated by his peers, and his weary eyes must have misted over at the sight of so many young artists gathered to pay him homage, this at a time when he couldn’t sell his work and had been supplementing his income by playing his violin in the streets. Most critics laughed and dismissed his work as naïve or childish, but Le Douanier found a home in the hearts of these talented young bohemians.


Picasso told the story often, how he’d seen one of Rousseau’s paintings protruding from the back of a pushcart stacked with trash. On the canvas a sturdy woman had been portrayed in a brash guileless manner unlike anything Picasso had seen. The peasant pushing the cart offered the canvas for a few coins, telling the future Father of Modern Art that it could be painted over. Picasso had no intention of re-using the canvas, which he considered a masterpiece. He purchased it on the spot, and later dashed off to seek out the artist.


Picasso was fascinated by Rousseau, who claimed to be self-taught with “no teacher other than nature.” Picasso admired the old man’s paintings, enjoyed the fanciful stories and spread the word. Before long, Le Douanier was the darling of young artists on the prowl for something fresh and new. Interesting that this was to be found in the paintings of an unacknowledged old toll collector.


The direction of art was changing. Academies and salons were no longer the vanguards of artistic exceptionalism. Years of training to master perspective, color theory and paint application were suddenly considered a waste of time. Truth would be the goal of modern art. And truth, contrary to what philosophers thought, couldn’t be taught but was to be found in individual human expression. Picasso and his friends recognized more than truth in Rousseau’s work; they saw purity, and innocence untainted by art history. Psychology was about to be born, and would soon replace philosophy.


Rousseau’s best known paintings depicted jungle scenes, and Rousseau claimed they were inspired by his military service, which was said to have included the French Expeditionary Force to Mexico. This was a lie; Rousseau never set foot in exotic lands, never journeyed outside of France. The animals he painted were inspired by trips to the zoo, illustrated books and visits to taxidermy shops. Many of the exotic plants in his work were taken from old engravings or observed at Paris’ botanical gardens.


In 1907 Rousseau painted The Snake Charmer. At first glance it’s easy to see why art critics ridiculed it; the colors and modeling are flat and unsophisticated, the lighting is peculiar, and the snakes are unrealistic tree branches. Even the plants refuse to conform to nature, his ferns stand in straight lines as if in a police line up. Rousseau later admitted that when he visited botanical gardens and saw exotic plants he felt like he was entering a dream, no doubt a place more real to him than his shabby life.


Serious artists no longer concern themselves with mimicking nature—cameras perform this chore—so when I stood before the surprisingly large Snake Charmer a few years ago I wasn’t prepared to be assaulted by the intensity of Rousseau’s reality. This wasn’t the reality of a sugary Parisian street scene, the type made famous by the Impressionists; here was something both new and ancient. Rousseau’s painting pulses with psychological energy while speaking timeless truths. It blazes a path forward toward Surrealism and the subconscious while harkening back to a place primordial, where cave painters captured the souls of animals to make them easier to hunt.


Now when I see this painting I envision Rousseau charming a young generation of artists, those who would later see in his work the impetus to bid farewell to preconceptions of reality in favor of a world of imagination, a universe of wondrous possibilities.


Rousseau was a liar; but has anyone else ever lied so exquisitely?


Also by Rousseau:


"The Dream." Rousseau's last painting.


Sleeping Gypsy.


30 comments:

  1. Wow- he was quite the trailblazer! It does my heart good to know he received at least some of his due before his death, and by none less than Picasso himself. I'm going to be Googling him so I can see more of his works~

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  2. Entertaining and enlightening piece, thank you. There is truth in the fact you're never too old to learn something new. :)

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  3. I'll have to take your word for all that stuff. All that cubism and whatnot of "Modern" art never really does much for me. I'm sure a lot of authors have jazzed up their backstory a little to seem more interesting. I should go try that because my backstory really isn't interesting at all.

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  4. I didn't know this. I know so little about art or the artists, that I'm not surprised that I didn't know this. There are so many things I don't know about. Makes life very interesting.

    Have a terrific day. :)

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  5. What an excellent inspiring story Stephen

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  6. Great story. You have a way of making history so enjoyable.

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  7. I really enjoy The Sleeping Gypsy. And apparently, Picasso wasn't the only artist impressed by Rousseau. *smile*

    Very interesting information. As Sandee said, reading about this has made my life more interesting today.

    Thank-you. *grin*

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  8. Wonderful story. Although I personally prefer the works of the impressionists...Monet a definite favorite judging by the prints hanging on my walls. But I must say I found Rousseau's work interesting if a little too precise for my taste. Each to their own eh?

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  9. Eva said it, "You have a way of making history so enjoyable." I really liked reading this. I hope you'll do more.

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  10. I love Rousseau's work. This story really makes me love it more. Thanks so much for a wonderful art education lesson. Good work Stephen.

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  11. I know very little about art, but I've seen that sleeping gypsy painting before. Had no idea it was painted by a liar. Which, though fascinating to learn about artist's lives, matters to me not at all. In the end--it is just the work. And I like it. ;)

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  12. When I saw the first painting I thought, "Damn...that Chubby Chaterbox can really paint!"

    Take that as a compliment.

    Interesting art lesson.

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  13. isn't art a wonderful thing? thanks for sharing a bit of hisotry and making rousseau himself come alive.

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  14. Enjoyed the art history lesson. Thanks for sharing. ;)

    S

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  15. I have to confess that I slept thru most of an art history class in college. (The teacher turned out the lights to show his slides ... what was I gonna do?) But I'm enjoying the art education that I'm getting here (even tho' I don't understand some of the comments).

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  16. Rousseau has long been one of my favourite artists. It's thrilling to reminded again of his paintings and his history. I've seen several of his works and have always found them to be mesmerizing...

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  17. I’ve always been a great admirer of Rousseau’s work. His naïve, primitive style always spoke to me, even as a youngster. I used to gaze at his paintings and let my mind wander, drifting to far off exotic locales, teeming with colossal flowers, lush foliage, and plump, inviting tropical fruits.

    I’m not at all surprised about him “embellishing” the facts of his life. Creative people often have humble backgrounds and fear their modest pasts might negatively influence critics. It’s interesting that today “outsider” art (art with a raw, seemingly unschooled style that’s often purposely created in that manner by refined artists) is so highly prized and embraced by at least a certain faction of the art community.

    I wonder if Rousseau might have had an easier time achieving validation as an artist if he’d been born later.

    Thanks for this wonderfully interesting post, Stephen!

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  18. His works are more real. Thanks for the art history lesson.

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  19. I find it most fascinating that Picasso was a mentor to someone so much older. You don't find that very often.

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  20. Charming. I prefer Rousseau to Picasso. I have simple, uneducated tastes.

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  21. I do not know any of this art stuff..I love learning about it from your blog! Everytime I look at my Pieta I see it differently.

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  22. Sharing your wisdom with us again, Stephen. An interesting story.

    I smiled at the thought of a "porky" telling old artist!

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  23. I've always kinda liked his works...in fact alittle more than the Spaniard himself. Thanks for the info, S.

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  24. Some really good writing in this post. Interesting and intriguing. I have never understood why it is necessary for some people all through the ages to be critics and attempt to influence others to their way of thinking. Art is free. Free in mind and spirit. I accept art in that manner. Freely. Open minded. Some things I am attracted to and some not so much. It is fascinating when someone shows a part of his or her interpretation that is like nothing seen previously.

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  25. What an interesting piece. Your art history pieces are my favorite. When I look at Rousseau's work, Frida Kahlo [a favorite of mine] comes to mind. Different subject matter but to me they have a similar emotional feel. Also, both artists were self taught and original. Brave and Bold!

    I think we need to find a better balance between philosophy and psychology rather than one over the other.

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  26. Stephen, I think the previous comments tell all that is necessary. But, you know me: a loquacious old timer. So . . . I think your post is fascinating, educational, telling. I happen to like very much the painting of Rousseau. I think it modernist, yes? But you are much more of a critic and an instructor than I am. In my shortened college career, I think I only rendered a C in Art!

    Great post. Great insight. Great writing.

    Thank you.

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  27. I really did not know anything about these artist. Loved reading them.

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  28. Not an art digger; but i found the paintings quite exceptional, I must say.

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  29. I appreciate your comments on art and artists. There's much more to think about if we know how the artist ticked.

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  30. Stephen: Your mention of Rousseau reminded me of another artist--the great Joni Mitchell! She included Rousseau in a song called "The Jungle Line".

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