For me the top hat laying in the mud alongside the corpse lends an extra ruthlessness to the entire scene. It's as if to say that no matter one's station in life we all return to the dirt. It is indeed a brutally cold scene.
Marshal Michel Ney was one of those incredible historical figures that I had so much fun researching when I was growing up. I had a knack for military history and he was one of the shining figures of Napoleonic tactical warfare. He also, like myself reflected his fiery temper in his fiery hair, and was fiercely loyal to his people, his nation, and his soldiers. Years later, when I heard from a friend that we would be able to go see his grave in Paris I was elated, paying respect to a man who gave everything, gambled everything, on what he believed was right.
4:31 I think part of what makes this painting so striking (and possibly controversial) from the perspective of a Frenchman (or even a contemporary European) of the 19th century is because of who Marshal Ney was. He was a famous and esteemed soldier and civil servant, with a dashing public persona. Rising from his birth as a commoner, just a few of his acts of heroism: he was famously seen as the last French commander to leave Russia during the winter retreat, he refused to turn Paris into a battlefield when commanded to do so - leading an insurrection of generals against Napoleon himself, and he had five horses shot out from under him and continued to fight during the Battle of Waterloo. He was as close to a Greek-Hero-Myth of a man as you could get in the French army. To see the body of this man, who moments earlier (with great panache) had refused a blindfold and issued the order to fire in his own execution, laying in the mud almost like discarded garbage is jarring. It would have been even more so for a Frenchman of the 19th century. For them, it would be the equivalent of seeing a photo of the body of JFK stashed in a corner while everyone in the room had their back turned to him. (EDIT: After seeing the other paintings in this series, it is a repeating theme: great figures discarded moments after their death.) The "Bravest of the Brave", a man who held a Field Marshal's Baton during the days of the Empire, left lying in the mud next to a bullet riddled wall. Before the days of photography, people didn't see the larger-than-life figures after their deaths like this. P.S. After looking at the series of paintings, the one difference between this and the others is that, looking carefully, you can see the senior officer in the upper left of the painting half turned looking back at Ney's body. In the other paintings, I don't see any of the "killers" looking back. I don't exactly know what that means, but I'm guessing a French military officer of the 19th century would have assigned it some meaning.
My favorite part of the 'The Execution of Marshal Ney' is the commanding officer turning back to look at what remains of Marshal Ney. You can tell he didn't stop walking, he's just pivoting, slowing just a little, continuing to march with his men. It could be interpreted as a sign of respect, or even disrespect, OR him just making sure the job was completed. But you also see, to the right of the commanding officer, the last 2 soldiers in the line, appear to be turning their heads to talk to each other or at least looking at one another with intent. Were they originally men of Napoleon? Did they serve under the late Marshal? Are they proud of their deed or ashamed? There's a lot to read there.
To me it seems like he’s the only person that has to show emotions. He’s the one who gave the order, the rest of the soldiers are just part of a machine controlled by him, an extension of his will so to say. What emotions he’s showing I think that’s up to the viewers interpretation
What really gets to me for some reason is his top hat, laying uselessly on the ground right by his body. A part of a gentleman's attire, worn proudly just moments before, now rolled over in the muck, man that once worn it no more. I look at it and I instantly understand, "it's over."
Those who killed in these paintings walk away from the violence; we cannot stop looking. You do so much in so few minutes. I owe my growing appreciation for art to your videos. Thank you.
I also wanted to add that there's an extra-sensory immersion from this artwork. You can hear the boots of the soldiers trudging through the mud as they walk away. The smell of gunpowder is still heavy in the air that surrounds the site of the execution. Very much similar to Goya's "3rd of May, 1808", where you can hear the cries and pleas of the victims, the movement of the rifles as the soldiers prepare to fire another volley, and the shouting commands from the French officer as the troops take aim. These works definitely want to pull you into the environment as a direct witness, and not just a casual observer walking by in a gallery.
It's so weird isnt it? Someone's death/murder is where emotion should be flaring but we dont get to see it, something like that shouldn't be that easy to walk away from. All the memories and life reduced to an object thats been thoughtlessly discarded. Personally i think the executioners are more of the focus than the body
Exactly my thought. This is a painting about the people who go about "just doing a day's work", even even that work is killing. It is the coldness of the scene that is so striking.
It's that one figure of the officer, who is half turning to look back towards Ney's body, that elevates it even more. Just the momentary pause, caught perfectly, that makes you wonder what is going through that officer's mind. Perhaps it's regret at the needless death of the former hero, which somehow grants the tiniest scintilla of dignity to the abandoned corpse.
As a person who makes comics, I just want to say your videos have been invaluable in making me think more about how art works and how I approach it, this video in particular is making me think a lot about how I have approached things in the past, and is making me reconsider how I will approach them in the future. Thank you for doing such fascinating breakdowns and analysis!
How you revealed the focal point of the Jerusalem painting was fantastic; I literally let out gasp. Very well done! Who knew one could be surprised by a painting?
When I am drawn in or intrigued by a certain work, I now find other works by the same artist online and compare, contrast and let other levels of my observation work. You brought that to me through your art. Merci beaucoup encore...😌
Awesome, just as usually. Thank you so, so much. As an "artist" myself (I'm 16 and know almost nothing about art history) I want to say that I was never interested in artists of previous years enough to make my own researches, and only after watching your videos I'm finally starting to come to understanding of just how much can one express true visual arts. Sadly, art schools are not stressing out at all just how important it is to learn from our ancestors or else not giving you any directions on how to actually analyze paintings. So, yes, my sincere gratitude. (English is not my mother tongue).
I hate to hear that art schools aren't giving students an overview of art history as I strongly believe that the best artists have researched past artists and put little hints of them in their art. As an example George Condo clearly has many influences from the past that inform his paintings but at the same time he has made them all his own. Keith Haring was influenced by Aboriginal art and Picasso by African masks he came across in a museum in Paris as well as other artists working in Paris at the same time such as Georges Braque. A great formula to start to find a style is in my opinion finding artists you like from the past and present and letting them influence your work and also befriending working artists. An artist is rarely able to produce in isolation.
@@jztouch Yes, thank you for pointing it out! Just like you said very few if not no people are capable of creating without any background. Therefore I see that all the artists I know (not depending on their skills) are no more but visuals makers. I guess, after graduating art colleges/academies we will learn, but now it's kind of sad.
You should definitely make a video about the epic paintings showing the Greek revolution of 1821. Many famous ones were done by Eugène Delacroix "the Massacre of Chios" (1822), Karl Krazeisen, greek artist Nikolaos Gyzis and many more great artists that have provided pictures of events that changed the history of Greece which i believe is not mentioned enough.
It's that one figure of the officer, who is half turning to look back towards Ney's body, that elevates it even more. Just the momentary pause, caught perfectly, that makes you wonder what is going through that officer's mind. Perhaps it's regret at the needless death of the former hero, which somehow grants the tiniest scintilla of dignity to the abandoned corpse.
In the other paintings at least there was a realization that whatever was happening, it was not acceptable. The dissent was expressed. But in Gérome's paintings, one has even been robbed from the power to express dissent; Left silent, dead.
I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am to have come across your channel. I was introduced to you with 'Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan', and have been hooked ever since. After viewing every video, I have a mini lecture with myself to fully express my own thoughts and impressions on the works you depict. With this one, I don't know why, but I feel the need to comment on a few points that jumped out at me: TLDR: Wow, sorry, this turned into an essay WAY too quickly. Short form, it's interesting to observe who's looking back at the deceased, and who is shown in light v in shadow or faded. Thank you again for your incredible content! 1. In The Execution of Marshal Ney, I was intrigued by the figure of the head executioner as he turns to glance at Ney's body. There's no need for him to confirm that Ney is still there, and no reason to confirm that he is indeed deceased. Yet Gerome shows him giving a final glance, and we're left wondering why. 2. The Duel After the Masquerade, the depiction of colors, and their level of vibrancy as we view each varying subject seems deliberate. Gerome wants us to first focus on the injured man, despite the fact that his white costume and paling skin so closely match the snow, and the pale sky. Being surrounded by more vibrantly clothed companions further draws our attention, and emphasizes the contrast between life and death. Meanwhile, the equally vibrantly colored opponents are faded, because they're walking away. The opponent appears to be supported by his companion, either from an injury, or, given the discarded sword, as a moral support. From that, I gather that the man, traumatized by what happened, couldn't even bear to face what he has done, and needed to leave immediately. Just my thoughts on that piece. 3. Jerusalem: I think I found this one the most fascinating. The skyline looks highly unnatural (unless it's the shadow from a nearby tree, but I doubt that), especially given the crescent moon on the far right, orange in hue, and cloaked in a darkness that seems to bleed into the sky. We're almost meant to focus on the crucified shadows, based on the brightest level of light directed on them. This observation would lead us to then note that the crowd now descends, both literally and figuratively, into darkness. The exception is two of the Romans who look back, and appear to be saluting the condemned, or at least giving some form of respectful acknowledgement. 4. The Death of Caesar: I like how this piece seems to contrast with the previous two, in terms of light and shadow. Caesar is shown in fading light, despite being dressed in the same white cloth as his killers. The killers are more brightly depicted as they rush out into the light of day to proudly declare what they have done. One older senator on the right, a little separate from the crowd, glances back at Caesar's body, and is one of the only three with his weapon held downward.
Really enjoy your content. Learn a lot of new to me art, about said art, and a little about why I've always been drawn more to darker side of life. Thank you!
There is silence but I also hear the sound of the boots walking away. It's strikingly cinematic, maybe something Kubrick might do if he had filmed the scene.
"I have fought a hundredth battles for France, not one against her" Supposedly Ney last words before being executed. Ney was an extraordinary marshal. Ney was the marshal sent to arrest Napoleon after his return from Elba, there Ney and all the French soldier joined Napoleon's cause again. Ney was a hero of the retreat from Russia, he covered the retreat and was the last men to get to safety, there's a great painting about that scene btw. Ney is also blamed for Napoleon loss at Waterloo, where he used the cavalry with little success against the British. Very interesting man, along with many of the Marshals of the Empire. An extraordinary group of men.
What I saw first, after the dead body, was the man looking back at the corpse. It's like he doesn't want to leave Ney in the mud, or as if he wanted to undo what he had witnessed. He looks to be an officer, not a soldier--he's not in the blue uniform and wears an officer's hat. Perhaps he was the one that led the execution, even if he was not allowed to order his own men to fire--Ney robbed him of that. Instead, he looks back at the corpse while he walks away, slower than his men who have forgotten about the man they just killed.
I also think that when death is depicted, maybe subconsciously to reinforce to us how terrible it is, it's always dramatic. Whether it's the act itself or the reaction from those around it be that family, friends or murderer. I feel like this also potentially give us some comfort, that our death will mean something, that we will be mourned and it will be an event. When we see these paintings, especially Caesar and the title painting, we're robbed of that and it's quite unnerving. I feel like he's amplified this by making the subject men who you'd expect thir death to be one that is an event, that has people rushing and screaming to try and bring them back or mourn them. But when they're just lying there alone, unceremoniously to the point where even the perpetrators deny them the emotional impetus of rage or jealousy or pity, they really just appear dead. I'm not sure if any of that makes sense, but these bodies seem more dead than almost any depiction I've seen before, perhaps it's because they already appear to be forgotten. Great video as always, been embarking on this art journey for close to 12 months now and you were the first person I started watching and I've loved all your videos. Keep up the great work and thank you for sharing these amazing paintings and your insights!
I love your videos. I have always been fascinated with art history, but I was always too intimidated to take a proper class. This channel is everything I idealized what that experience could have felt like, and I'm so glad I found your channel. Also, you have a really calming voice
One particular feeling I get out of all of these paintings is a sense of consequence. The act is completed and the perpetrators move on, but the body remains, suggesting that despite the careless nature of the executioners, the death matters more than even they do, and that while they may even forget, the world will remember forever.
Ney is actually an important person for me- as a child I was obsessed with Napoléon and his campaigns and Ney was one of his best generals - his double treason made him all the more interesting.
paintings like this really make me think of corpses and the diference between treating them as objects no longer possessing dignity VS treating them as though they are still a person, its like the diference between thinking the neutral state of being is death and a corpse is simply returning to its neutral state VS thinking that death is simply the after image of life. It reminds me loads of the Jacob Geller video on disco elysiums autopsy and the scene in game in general. Stunning video!
What I felt while looking and these paintings was strange. I felt like as if I watched an execution happen and end. Maybe that's what the artist was after. That feeling of witnessing violence and its immediate end. The feeling of mild confusion and looking for something missing, not desperately searching for it but expecting it to be there. You were expecting to feel something but there's nothing. All you really saw was a murder not some glorious conflict or the end of a climax. There is no satisfaction felt by onlookers and probably the executioners too. It makes you ask if the perpetrators felt something right after doing it not what they felt later but right after the moment pass.
Really makes one think if it was even necessary to commit such acts when after all is said and done, nothing comes to it. It is just silence and a corpse.
The "immediate aftermath" is an ephemeral moment rarely caught. But whatever happens after the last breath of the victim is of the concern of the witnesses, is it justice or murder?
This could be pointing to the relative anonymity of the executioners, when the victim was famous before death, the killers remain unknown. But when the victims are unknown, the killers become famous, like with the case of serial killers
The shadows of the crucified men was incredibly jarring for reasons I can't quite put into words. We've seen the image of the crucifix everywhere, been desensitized to it, despite it being one of the most barbaric, prolonged, agonizing ways to die. Yet by only seeing the shadow cast by the doomed men, it makes the cruelty of the scene just as jarring and unsettling to look at as it should be.
Wow about the Jerusalem painting I too didn’t feel any reaction until you zoomed in on the lower right corner shadows. Then my reaction was visceral. Thank you for introducing me to this artist and his profound and tragic works on the brutal finality and indignity, the deafening quiet, of death.
The painting feels so real because it captures something anyone who's held a dead body, be it pet or human, knows : how *heavy* the dead are. They weigh seemingly many more times than they felt before, they just sink downwards in every direction. This has that, the gravity. This painter knew death. God his paintings make me so angry. Brilliant work.
It is striking to me that the officer in head of the execution squad glances back at the deed he has done. Marshall Ney, hero of France, perhaps a personal hero of the officer himself, just there laying in the mud. All the fame, honor and glory he had while he lived and the result? Left alone like a common thief.
A small correction on Ney's history. After Napoleon's first defeat and exile to Elba he swore fealty to the Bourbon monarchy, when Napoleon escaped Elba and got to France the King sent him to capture Napoleon and Ney promised to bring him back in an iron cage. However, when his troops met with Napoleon they joined him and Ney went back to serving his emperor. It was only after his final defeat at Waterloo that the once again restored Bourbons persecuted some of those who once again sided with Napoleon. Ney was at the top of the list since he was such a famous figure and a true hero of the Napoleonic wars. His execution was very controversial, he was tried by a military court by former comrades and quite a few did not want to execute him, however there was quite a bit of political pressure and in the end executed he was. His ending was probably the most marking of any of Napoleon's marshalls, especially because of how much of a hero he had been and how he ended, just as the painting shows, face in the mud, killed by soldiers who were in the same campaigns as him and that likely admired him still.
I can see how this painting was shocking to the French public at those times, because it shows as you said how easy it was to kill this man. The bravest of the brave. The Russian Cossacks wanted to capture him alive because they saw him as a kindred spirit, Michel Ney was an absolute badass. Feared and revered by everyone. And to see his fate, face down in the mud undignified it must’ve brought out many of the emotions of the French, who in those days held their heroes, in the highest regard.
not only the body resembles execution as a mere act, from a third person view, the casualty of executioners walking away and the fact that they are not completely aware of the cruelty within their action is astonishing, in addition to it's shame. leaving the corpse to rott and perhabs not realizing it's existance after couple of days.
For me, the appeal of this painting primarily lies in the person of Ney. He was indeed a very brave soldier (who performed heroic, almost superhuman deeds during the retreat from Russia), but by no means a flawless general. But the crucial point is that he first promised king Louis XVIII. to return Napoleon "in an iron cage" to Paris after he had returned from Elba - Ney wanted to avoid a bloody civil war. But after his troops had defected to Napoleon and the Emperor appealed to Ney as the hero of the army, he too joined him. After Waterloo, Ney refused to flee France several times and was arrested. Several other generals and Marshals had joined Napoleon, but they got away relatively easy - only Ney was tried for treason. The Bourbon monarchy wanted to make him a symbolic case, and the whole thing turned into an unsavoury political show trial. Ney's death was certain before it even began. And still, he refused to flee and accepted his execution. For me, this is the true meaning of this painting: France's bravest officer, loved by the soldiers, is betrayed by his own country, tossed away by the new government to make a political point. He himself expressed this ingratitude and injustice in his last words: "...I protest against my condemnation [as a traitor]. I have fought hundreds of battles for France and not one against her. Soldiers, fire!" I think the painting expresses that very well - Ney lies dead on the ground, in civilian clothes, robbed of all military glory. Executed by the very soldiers who once saw him as their talisman and hero. It's not an important event, not a big public execution, just a man being shot in an insignificant corner of Paris. The column marches away and that's it. The officer looks back at the scene, perhaps with regret, perhaps with indifference or resentment.
A similar painting is Ernest Meissonier’s ‘Memory of Civil War’ (1848), portraying the corpses of rebels killed in the 1848 uprising in Paris. Common wisdom has it that the artist, a known conservative, intended the work not so much to evoke sympathy for the fallen but rather to be a warning to others against any further uprisings against the established order.
Excellent video! Well done. When it comes to visual presentations on art, l prefer formats such as yours. I have grown weary of the ‘art expert or historian as celebrity’ format on TV where the presenter makes themselves the central focus. Far better to let the art itself be the main focal point. I also appreciate your softer, gentler narration. Marshal Ney is well known and admired by Napoleonic War buffs but yes, he’s a largely forgotten figure of history outside the confines of warfare studies.
Marshal Michel Ney was really “The Bravest of the Brave.” A veteran of plenty of Napoleon’s greatest campaigns, he led VI Corps and III Corps to victory with his fiery disposition and incorruptible courage, even when it led to some hairy situations. Perhaps his most famous act during the Napoleonic Wars was his role in the Invasion of Russia. After the torching of Moscow and la Grande Armée’s unfortunate retreat, Ney and his battered III Corps led a successful rearguard campaign against the pursuing Russians, allowing what remained of the army to escape. Legend says that he was the last soldier to cross the bridge at Konvo and exit Russia. After the dire campaigns in Germany and France, Ney was the foremost general to approach Napoleon and confront him with the reality of his situation, convincing him to abdicate. He was loyal to his Emperor, but he was really more loyal to France and its people. Upon the Napoleon’s return from exile, Ney was among the first to confront and stop the former Emperor, but following an astonishing example of leadership and charisma, Ney’s entire force surrendered to Napoleon, and Ney was forced to pledge his allegiance. Following the Battle of Waterloo, an event where Ney is partly to blame for the army’s loss, the Bourbons returned to the throne and many in the government wished to make an example of many who defected to Napoleon. Ney was the man they despised the most. After a rigged trial where many of his former colleagues and generals pleaded against his execution, the outcome was grim. At the execution block, Ney stared at the men with no fear. Without a blindfold, he said to them, “Soldiers, when I give the command to fire, fire straight at my heart. Wait for the order. It will be my last to you. I protest against my condemnation. I have fought a hundred battles for France, and not one against her.” He then gave the order to fire. The past months would be filled with pardons and reconciliations between similar Revolutionary figures and the Bourbons, so it was quite the tragedy what happened to Ney. I think the painting exemplifies this sadness: one of France’s brightest stars, face down into the mud and robbed of what he was truly owed.
Ney was brave, but he was also complicated. Napoleon made him one of the most important men in Europe, when Emperor returned he set up to capture him. He failed, and pledged his allegiance to hm once more. But then, he was one of the reasons why we lost at Waterloo. It's hard to decide whether to hate him, or have pity and sympatize
Actually, I am reading a book called La semaine sainte by Aragon telling the very story of the comeback of Napoléon in 1815, right after the famous betrayal of Generel Ney. He is depicted as a true traitor for pretty much the whole country, even though France is divided between those who swear allegiance to the King and those who are for Napoleon's return. This is my response to your comment at 4:30. Indeed, some people still care about French history, especially us french lol I didn't know about that painting at all and the thumbnail definetly caughy my eye. Not the most virtuous painting of Jean-Léon Gérôme but for sure one of the most haunting ones. Thanks for the insights. Great video. Your point is absolutly valid but Ney facing the ground like this, without any dignity, may come from a political standpoint, Gérôme willingly disrespecting the memory of Ney.
Really interesting video, thank you for always choosing such interesting paintings to show us, these 4 were really all so interesting. Great stuff man, lookin forward to the next one
I don't know if Gérôme's exact intentions for "The Execution of Marshal Ney" are recorded anywhere, but for me it has a further meaning. Ney was a cooper's son, albeit the son of a master cooper and therefore a business owner rather than simply a worker, and he ascended to his military station. Despite the hero status he achieved during his life, to be able to challenge Napoleon himself to abdicate and yet win that argument, he had no security. He found himself in a position of trying to serve the apparent power, flipping allegiance from Napoleon to the Bourbons and back again, because he remained a servant. Despite demonstrating, if anything, a solid service record to France regardless of who led it, he is disposable. He survived the stupidity of Napoleon's invasion of Russia, through the most extraordinary danger, only to die at the hands of the next wave of incompetency. He comes from the street, rather than a mansion like so many decorated high-ranking military leaders, and he dies in it. The national power, represented by the soldiers, turns its back on his still-warm body. The house always wins. To me, this painting is questioning the entire business of the citizen pledging their life to a power which only cares about itself. Even if you achieve the most you possibly can in service, you are ultimately disrespected by an executive class which is almost entirely insulated against the threats you face.
Great video as always! I love how atmospheric your works are. It really brings these paintings to live. though I would wish you talked a bit more about Ney and his exicution in detail. To me the painting shows just perfectly how quickly on can fall from grace and world history.
I think the reason the execution is so much more striking than the others is because of its subject being the body. With the others, the focus is the dying man and the worry of those around him, the landscape, or the energy of those leaving. Here, the soldiers are leaving, the event is mundane to them. We are brought face to face with death in this painting, an event that we experience with major emotion, like the painful loss of a loved one or the terrifying end of our own lives. When we hear about anyone else dying we think it's sad, but we're not affected, we're apathetic and we want to think that when we die it will matter, but from our own experience and reactions we know it won't. And here, we face our own mortality and, not only are we met with apathy, but that lack of dignity as well. I think this painting is so much more striking because somehow we see ourselves as the dead man and believe we've been denied that emotion and respect. To ourselves we are the whole world and it can't not matter when the world ends.
Not frozen in time. Time is back to moving on without you, again. That spark that is you is left behind. Just gone. The fear and the romance is stripped away after that pivotal moment and you are just no more. Left behind like so much debree. You have now done all you could ever do. You are marginal and dismissed. You are left to erode as a part of the landscape. The fragility that was you expressed. The noblest of deeds discarded and left to ruin. No longer to be anything more then the past, remembered or forgotten. Reminded that you were never meant not to be. If not remembered, if never painted, maybe you never were.
No matter your status in the world, how insignificant or important your life was, death treat us the same way. People move on right after you are a corpse. Most of these painting, the executioners are not even looking at the body right after, as if they have more pressing things in their lives, it's crazy.
A thoughtful video & interesting to see the comparison of the 3 paintings. A ignominious end to a man with humble origins that rose to be a pre-eminent marshal if not the premier in the Grand Armee. A brave if at times impetuous soldier. It could be argued that his death was a political assassination rather than execution as the post Napoleon rule needed an "example" to be set to establish the new order. There is no dignity in a death that leaves you lying face down in the mud & the top hat is a symbol of what has been lost: not only life but honour, status & reputation. History has been kinder to Marshal Michel Ney.
I find it particularly intresting, because it takes away any heroics or grandeur. The firing squad itself usually isnt portrayed as something heroic. A person getting executed, there's much room for variety. Defiance, Fear, Anger, Sadness etc. But in this case we get to see nothing of that. Just the result of a method to kill that's been around for centuries. I'd be curious if the same thing applies to paintings of battles or battlefields. I'd argue that showing the aftermath shows the reality of war and violence much more honest than the act of carrying out violence, because the latter more easily allows glorifying said violence.
I love that you covered Jean-Leon Gerome as I've always been fascinated by these particular works you mentioned. I think the strangeness in these paintings is the aftermath. The main event is over, the ones depicted in history books but here we're given the 'after' and it's unsettling. It's all fragility, silence, sadness. Caesar is half in shadow and easy to miss as the light is on the backs of the senators. As well, my understanding of Golgotha, the Jerusalem painting, is the figures are meant to be Jesus and the two thieves he was crucified between, making this painting all the more powerful. But none of the main players are in the actual painting. We have shadows and retreating figures too far away to make out. We don't see Ney's face. The duellist has dropped the murder weapon and we have no context for why they quarrelled. They're like accident scenes where everyone's already leaving to go about their business.
Aww dude. This guy is Fuckin Fantastic. I will have to research now. I already am in Love with Eugene Carriere from one of your vid's and pretty into Hopper to. Carriere is the man who paints ghosts. Hahaha. If I wasn't homeless I would Patreon you. Anywho= I totally appreciate all of your effort and your insight in your video's is very on point. Thank you!
Had to get the Patreon after this video! Wish we had known about this channel when I was studying art history in college! Thanks for the great content!! I’m doing arts administration now if you ever have an opinion on that topic I’d be interested!:)
I really liked this. To me it feels like these paintings are trying to demystify the death of these people. Executions like these are often connected to great stories about the lives of these people, how their deaths affected others and how it changed society. No matter how seemingly important these people were, in the moments right after their execution they were just another body laying in the mud.
I love this episode. Makes you ponder on how easy it is for many people to approve of death penalty, over looking the reality, lack of dignity, and humanity it brings. I would love to see the same depiction of death and dignity but with soldiers as the subject. Soldiers weren't punished, but governments force them to fight against each other on the battle field. Many are left behind on the ground.
The picture has multiple meanings that could and can be argued. The most disturbing part on this painting for me is that he is really well-dressed with fallen hat beside him, for me it seems like it depicts execution of old order and values and ideas, or ultimately it seems like a murder of civilization and order. And all the question it raises in my mind, from ultimate human insignificance, simplicity of life... It's great, and to complicated to be defined in sentence. It's definitely controversial. Great work and great and different content, I forgot to mention that, painting was too grimmy astounding
Ney '...fought a thousand battles for France and not one against her.' To execute Ney was a tall order in its day as many, especially within the military thought of Ney as France. To slay him, was to betray France. It is a declaration of martyrdom and betrayal. My guess anyways. There are some excellent vids about him if you are curious, try Epic History to start with.
this reminds me of the two depictions of Lucrecia by Rembrandt. in the first one he shows her in the motion of stabbing herself and in the second (done years later) you can see her after the act. i've always found the second painting more striking, her face full of regret and sadness doesn't compare to the first one.
I feel as if there isn't just a silence. I would presume that the purportrators actually nake quite a bit of noise just talking to eachother going about their business after the execution. That would create an interesting conflict between the silence of the dead and the -perhaps nonchalan - noises coming from the purportrators who are seemingly continuing going about their day in every painting
The aftermath of a murder or an execution is death. You also see these images in films and shows in the past and present media. Violence doesn't accomplish anything but death in many cases.
For me the top hat laying in the mud alongside the corpse lends an extra ruthlessness to the entire scene. It's as if to say that no matter one's station in life we all return to the dirt. It is indeed a brutally cold scene.
Marshal Michel Ney was one of those incredible historical figures that I had so much fun researching when I was growing up. I had a knack for military history and he was one of the shining figures of Napoleonic tactical warfare. He also, like myself reflected his fiery temper in his fiery hair, and was fiercely loyal to his people, his nation, and his soldiers. Years later, when I heard from a friend that we would be able to go see his grave in Paris I was elated, paying respect to a man who gave everything, gambled everything, on what he believed was right.
Well said,saves me having to post ..
😢
4:31 I think part of what makes this painting so striking (and possibly controversial) from the perspective of a Frenchman (or even a contemporary European) of the 19th century is because of who Marshal Ney was. He was a famous and esteemed soldier and civil servant, with a dashing public persona. Rising from his birth as a commoner, just a few of his acts of heroism: he was famously seen as the last French commander to leave Russia during the winter retreat, he refused to turn Paris into a battlefield when commanded to do so - leading an insurrection of generals against Napoleon himself, and he had five horses shot out from under him and continued to fight during the Battle of Waterloo. He was as close to a Greek-Hero-Myth of a man as you could get in the French army.
To see the body of this man, who moments earlier (with great panache) had refused a blindfold and issued the order to fire in his own execution, laying in the mud almost like discarded garbage is jarring. It would have been even more so for a Frenchman of the 19th century. For them, it would be the equivalent of seeing a photo of the body of JFK stashed in a corner while everyone in the room had their back turned to him. (EDIT: After seeing the other paintings in this series, it is a repeating theme: great figures discarded moments after their death.)
The "Bravest of the Brave", a man who held a Field Marshal's Baton during the days of the Empire, left lying in the mud next to a bullet riddled wall. Before the days of photography, people didn't see the larger-than-life figures after their deaths like this.
P.S. After looking at the series of paintings, the one difference between this and the others is that, looking carefully, you can see the senior officer in the upper left of the painting half turned looking back at Ney's body. In the other paintings, I don't see any of the "killers" looking back. I don't exactly know what that means, but I'm guessing a French military officer of the 19th century would have assigned it some meaning.
My favorite part of the 'The Execution of Marshal Ney' is the commanding officer turning back to look at what remains of Marshal Ney. You can tell he didn't stop walking, he's just pivoting, slowing just a little, continuing to march with his men. It could be interpreted as a sign of respect, or even disrespect, OR him just making sure the job was completed. But you also see, to the right of the commanding officer, the last 2 soldiers in the line, appear to be turning their heads to talk to each other or at least looking at one another with intent. Were they originally men of Napoleon? Did they serve under the late Marshal? Are they proud of their deed or ashamed? There's a lot to read there.
To me it seems like he’s the only person that has to show emotions. He’s the one who gave the order, the rest of the soldiers are just part of a machine controlled by him, an extension of his will so to say. What emotions he’s showing I think that’s up to the viewers interpretation
@@moonman8450 oh that's a good interpretation too.
What really gets to me for some reason is his top hat, laying uselessly on the ground right by his body. A part of a gentleman's attire, worn proudly just moments before, now rolled over in the muck, man that once worn it no more. I look at it and I instantly understand, "it's over."
Marshall Ney is huge to me. The stories of his bravery and achievements during the napolionic war were a big part of my childhood.
Those who killed in these paintings walk away from the violence; we cannot stop looking.
You do so much in so few minutes. I owe my growing appreciation for art to your videos. Thank you.
I also wanted to add that there's an extra-sensory immersion from this artwork. You can hear the boots of the soldiers trudging through the mud as they walk away. The smell of gunpowder is still heavy in the air that surrounds the site of the execution. Very much similar to Goya's "3rd of May, 1808", where you can hear the cries and pleas of the victims, the movement of the rifles as the soldiers prepare to fire another volley, and the shouting commands from the French officer as the troops take aim. These works definitely want to pull you into the environment as a direct witness, and not just a casual observer walking by in a gallery.
It's so weird isnt it? Someone's death/murder is where emotion should be flaring but we dont get to see it, something like that shouldn't be that easy to walk away from. All the memories and life reduced to an object thats been thoughtlessly discarded. Personally i think the executioners are more of the focus than the body
Yes, exactly.
Very well said, looselytelling.
Exactly my thought. This is a painting about the people who go about "just doing a day's work", even even that work is killing. It is the coldness of the scene that is so striking.
Ok
It's that one figure of the officer, who is half turning to look back towards Ney's body, that elevates it even more. Just the momentary pause, caught perfectly, that makes you wonder what is going through that officer's mind. Perhaps it's regret at the needless death of the former hero, which somehow grants the tiniest scintilla of dignity to the abandoned corpse.
As a person who makes comics, I just want to say your videos have been invaluable in making me think more about how art works and how I approach it, this video in particular is making me think a lot about how I have approached things in the past, and is making me reconsider how I will approach them in the future. Thank you for doing such fascinating breakdowns and analysis!
Share your works! Happy to meet more people who do new media but explore more classical works.
The video is a poem/painting in itself. The music, the soft way you speak, the pictures. Especially with the violin.
How you revealed the focal point of the Jerusalem painting was fantastic; I literally let out gasp. Very well done! Who knew one could be surprised by a painting?
When I am drawn in or intrigued by a certain work, I now find other works by the same artist online and compare, contrast and let other levels of my observation work. You brought that to me through your art. Merci beaucoup encore...😌
Awesome, just as usually. Thank you so, so much. As an "artist" myself (I'm 16 and know almost nothing about art history) I want to say that I was never interested in artists of previous years enough to make my own researches, and only after watching your videos I'm finally starting to come to understanding of just how much can one express true visual arts. Sadly, art schools are not stressing out at all just how important it is to learn from our ancestors or else not giving you any directions on how to actually analyze paintings.
So, yes, my sincere gratitude. (English is not my mother tongue).
I hate to hear that art schools aren't giving students an overview of art history as I strongly believe that the best artists have researched past artists and put little hints of them in their art. As an example George Condo clearly has many influences from the past that inform his paintings but at the same time he has made them all his own. Keith Haring was influenced by Aboriginal art and Picasso by African masks he came across in a museum in Paris as well as other artists working in Paris at the same time such as Georges Braque. A great formula to start to find a style is in my opinion finding artists you like from the past and present and letting them influence your work and also befriending working artists. An artist is rarely able to produce in isolation.
@@jztouch Yes, thank you for pointing it out! Just like you said very few if not no people are capable of creating without any background. Therefore I see that all the artists I know (not depending on their skills) are no more but visuals makers. I guess, after graduating art colleges/academies we will learn, but now it's kind of sad.
You should definitely make a video about the epic paintings showing the Greek revolution of 1821. Many famous ones were done by Eugène Delacroix "the Massacre of Chios" (1822), Karl Krazeisen, greek artist Nikolaos Gyzis and many more great artists that have provided pictures of events that changed the history of Greece which i believe is not mentioned enough.
It's that one figure of the officer, who is half turning to look back towards Ney's body, that elevates it even more. Just the momentary pause, caught perfectly, that makes you wonder what is going through that officer's mind. Perhaps it's regret at the needless death of the former hero, which somehow grants the tiniest scintilla of dignity to the abandoned corpse.
In the other paintings at least there was a realization that whatever was happening, it was not acceptable. The dissent was expressed. But in Gérome's paintings, one has even been robbed from the power to express dissent; Left silent, dead.
i’m not really into painting as i am into other forms of art, but something about this was really impactful
your work brings all this art to life for me. I was blind and now I see. Thank you.
I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am to have come across your channel. I was introduced to you with 'Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan', and have been hooked ever since. After viewing every video, I have a mini lecture with myself to fully express my own thoughts and impressions on the works you depict. With this one, I don't know why, but I feel the need to comment on a few points that jumped out at me:
TLDR: Wow, sorry, this turned into an essay WAY too quickly. Short form, it's interesting to observe who's looking back at the deceased, and who is shown in light v in shadow or faded. Thank you again for your incredible content!
1. In The Execution of Marshal Ney, I was intrigued by the figure of the head executioner as he turns to glance at Ney's body. There's no need for him to confirm that Ney is still there, and no reason to confirm that he is indeed deceased. Yet Gerome shows him giving a final glance, and we're left wondering why.
2. The Duel After the Masquerade, the depiction of colors, and their level of vibrancy as we view each varying subject seems deliberate. Gerome wants us to first focus on the injured man, despite the fact that his white costume and paling skin so closely match the snow, and the pale sky. Being surrounded by more vibrantly clothed companions further draws our attention, and emphasizes the contrast between life and death. Meanwhile, the equally vibrantly colored opponents are faded, because they're walking away. The opponent appears to be supported by his companion, either from an injury, or, given the discarded sword, as a moral support. From that, I gather that the man, traumatized by what happened, couldn't even bear to face what he has done, and needed to leave immediately. Just my thoughts on that piece.
3. Jerusalem: I think I found this one the most fascinating. The skyline looks highly unnatural (unless it's the shadow from a nearby tree, but I doubt that), especially given the crescent moon on the far right, orange in hue, and cloaked in a darkness that seems to bleed into the sky. We're almost meant to focus on the crucified shadows, based on the brightest level of light directed on them. This observation would lead us to then note that the crowd now descends, both literally and figuratively, into darkness. The exception is two of the Romans who look back, and appear to be saluting the condemned, or at least giving some form of respectful acknowledgement.
4. The Death of Caesar: I like how this piece seems to contrast with the previous two, in terms of light and shadow. Caesar is shown in fading light, despite being dressed in the same white cloth as his killers. The killers are more brightly depicted as they rush out into the light of day to proudly declare what they have done. One older senator on the right, a little separate from the crowd, glances back at Caesar's body, and is one of the only three with his weapon held downward.
That was so viscerally poignant! The greatest outrage is the indifference.
I can hear this painting, it is so powerful.
The deafening hand wringing and inevitable walking away after a similar picture of Alan Kurdi went viral. You can still hear it.
Thank you. “The Sounds of Silence “. Well Done
Really enjoy your content. Learn a lot of new to me art, about said art, and a little about why I've always been drawn more to darker side of life. Thank you!
There is silence but I also hear the sound of the boots walking away. It's strikingly cinematic, maybe something Kubrick might do if he had filmed the scene.
"I have fought a hundredth battles for France, not one against her"
Supposedly Ney last words before being executed.
Ney was an extraordinary marshal. Ney was the marshal sent to arrest Napoleon after his return from Elba, there Ney and all the French soldier joined Napoleon's cause again. Ney was a hero of the retreat from Russia, he covered the retreat and was the last men to get to safety, there's a great painting about that scene btw. Ney is also blamed for Napoleon loss at Waterloo, where he used the cavalry with little success against the British.
Very interesting man, along with many of the Marshals of the Empire. An extraordinary group of men.
I really like these videos you do where you explore a concept through artworks. you've convinced me to join
What I saw first, after the dead body, was the man looking back at the corpse. It's like he doesn't want to leave Ney in the mud, or as if he wanted to undo what he had witnessed. He looks to be an officer, not a soldier--he's not in the blue uniform and wears an officer's hat. Perhaps he was the one that led the execution, even if he was not allowed to order his own men to fire--Ney robbed him of that. Instead, he looks back at the corpse while he walks away, slower than his men who have forgotten about the man they just killed.
I also think that when death is depicted, maybe subconsciously to reinforce to us how terrible it is, it's always dramatic. Whether it's the act itself or the reaction from those around it be that family, friends or murderer. I feel like this also potentially give us some comfort, that our death will mean something, that we will be mourned and it will be an event. When we see these paintings, especially Caesar and the title painting, we're robbed of that and it's quite unnerving. I feel like he's amplified this by making the subject men who you'd expect thir death to be one that is an event, that has people rushing and screaming to try and bring them back or mourn them. But when they're just lying there alone, unceremoniously to the point where even the perpetrators deny them the emotional impetus of rage or jealousy or pity, they really just appear dead. I'm not sure if any of that makes sense, but these bodies seem more dead than almost any depiction I've seen before, perhaps it's because they already appear to be forgotten. Great video as always, been embarking on this art journey for close to 12 months now and you were the first person I started watching and I've loved all your videos. Keep up the great work and thank you for sharing these amazing paintings and your insights!
They are “visual denouements”: the climax has already played out, and we are left to sit in the quiet and contemplate in the the banality of death.
The sheer level of detail in the execution of Caesar is unbelievable
I love your videos. I have always been fascinated with art history, but I was always too intimidated to take a proper class. This channel is everything I idealized what that experience could have felt like, and I'm so glad I found your channel. Also, you have a really calming voice
What a wonderful critique about the painting, its context and its meaning❤
Well done maestro 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
The man in background also looks like Napoleon a little looking back in disappointment
One particular feeling I get out of all of these paintings is a sense of consequence. The act is completed and the perpetrators move on, but the body remains, suggesting that despite the careless nature of the executioners, the death matters more than even they do, and that while they may even forget, the world will remember forever.
Ney is actually an important person for me- as a child I was obsessed with Napoléon and his campaigns and Ney was one of his best generals - his double treason made him all the more interesting.
paintings like this really make me think of corpses and the diference between treating them as objects no longer possessing dignity VS treating them as though they are still a person, its like the diference between thinking the neutral state of being is death and a corpse is simply returning to its neutral state VS thinking that death is simply the after image of life. It reminds me loads of the Jacob Geller video on disco elysiums autopsy and the scene in game in general. Stunning video!
What I felt while looking and these paintings was strange. I felt like as if I watched an execution happen and end. Maybe that's what the artist was after. That feeling of witnessing violence and its immediate end. The feeling of mild confusion and looking for something missing, not desperately searching for it but expecting it to be there. You were expecting to feel something but there's nothing. All you really saw was a murder not some glorious conflict or the end of a climax. There is no satisfaction felt by onlookers and probably the executioners too. It makes you ask if the perpetrators felt something right after doing it not what they felt later but right after the moment pass.
Really makes one think if it was even necessary to commit such acts when after all is said and done, nothing comes to it. It is just silence and a corpse.
Thanks for sharing this with us... it's a fascinating commentary on execution and gives pause to the barbarity of capital punishment...🤔
The "immediate aftermath" is an ephemeral moment rarely caught. But whatever happens after the last breath of the victim is of the concern of the witnesses, is it justice or murder?
This could be pointing to the relative anonymity of the executioners, when the victim was famous before death, the killers remain unknown. But when the victims are unknown, the killers become famous, like with the case of serial killers
The shadows of the crucified men was incredibly jarring for reasons I can't quite put into words. We've seen the image of the crucifix everywhere, been desensitized to it, despite it being one of the most barbaric, prolonged, agonizing ways to die. Yet by only seeing the shadow cast by the doomed men, it makes the cruelty of the scene just as jarring and unsettling to look at as it should be.
Wow about the Jerusalem painting I too didn’t feel any reaction until you zoomed in on the lower right corner shadows. Then my reaction was visceral. Thank you for introducing me to this artist and his profound and tragic works on the brutal finality and indignity, the deafening quiet, of death.
The painting feels so real because it captures something anyone who's held a dead body, be it pet or human, knows : how *heavy* the dead are. They weigh seemingly many more times than they felt before, they just sink downwards in every direction. This has that, the gravity. This painter knew death. God his paintings make me so angry. Brilliant work.
It is striking to me that the officer in head of the execution squad glances back at the deed he has done. Marshall Ney, hero of France, perhaps a personal hero of the officer himself, just there laying in the mud. All the fame, honor and glory he had while he lived and the result? Left alone like a common thief.
Thank you for this.
You can look @ art, or you can pay attention to art.
In the 1st: crumbs.
In the 2nd: an entire meal
A small correction on Ney's history. After Napoleon's first defeat and exile to Elba he swore fealty to the Bourbon monarchy, when Napoleon escaped Elba and got to France the King sent him to capture Napoleon and Ney promised to bring him back in an iron cage. However, when his troops met with Napoleon they joined him and Ney went back to serving his emperor. It was only after his final defeat at Waterloo that the once again restored Bourbons persecuted some of those who once again sided with Napoleon. Ney was at the top of the list since he was such a famous figure and a true hero of the Napoleonic wars. His execution was very controversial, he was tried by a military court by former comrades and quite a few did not want to execute him, however there was quite a bit of political pressure and in the end executed he was. His ending was probably the most marking of any of Napoleon's marshalls, especially because of how much of a hero he had been and how he ended, just as the painting shows, face in the mud, killed by soldiers who were in the same campaigns as him and that likely admired him still.
I was surprisingly moved by this analysis and the way Gerome handled violence and death, it's a concept that I have not seen this way in art
It's the hat that gets me.
I can see how this painting was shocking to the French public at those times, because it shows as you said how easy it was to kill this man. The bravest of the brave. The Russian Cossacks wanted to capture him alive because they saw him as a kindred spirit, Michel Ney was an absolute badass. Feared and revered by everyone. And to see his fate, face down in the mud undignified it must’ve brought out many of the emotions of the French, who in those days held their heroes, in the highest regard.
Thank u for the content!
Another great video, comrade!
Thank you so much!
What music do you use? Also Jean-Léon Gérôme is brilliant, I absolutely adore his painting.
not only the body resembles execution as a mere act, from a third person view, the casualty of executioners walking away and the fact that they are not completely aware of the cruelty within their action is astonishing, in addition to it's shame. leaving the corpse to rott and perhabs not realizing it's existance after couple of days.
Awesome. Thanks
For me, the appeal of this painting primarily lies in the person of Ney. He was indeed a very brave soldier (who performed heroic, almost superhuman deeds during the retreat from Russia), but by no means a flawless general. But the crucial point is that he first promised king Louis XVIII. to return Napoleon "in an iron cage" to Paris after he had returned from Elba - Ney wanted to avoid a bloody civil war. But after his troops had defected to Napoleon and the Emperor appealed to Ney as the hero of the army, he too joined him.
After Waterloo, Ney refused to flee France several times and was arrested. Several other generals and Marshals had joined Napoleon, but they got away relatively easy - only Ney was tried for treason. The Bourbon monarchy wanted to make him a symbolic case, and the whole thing turned into an unsavoury political show trial. Ney's death was certain before it even began. And still, he refused to flee and accepted his execution.
For me, this is the true meaning of this painting: France's bravest officer, loved by the soldiers, is betrayed by his own country, tossed away by the new government to make a political point. He himself expressed this ingratitude and injustice in his last words: "...I protest against my condemnation [as a traitor]. I have fought hundreds of battles for France and not one against her. Soldiers, fire!"
I think the painting expresses that very well - Ney lies dead on the ground, in civilian clothes, robbed of all military glory. Executed by the very soldiers who once saw him as their talisman and hero. It's not an important event, not a big public execution, just a man being shot in an insignificant corner of Paris. The column marches away and that's it. The officer looks back at the scene, perhaps with regret, perhaps with indifference or resentment.
A similar painting is Ernest Meissonier’s ‘Memory of Civil War’ (1848), portraying the corpses of rebels killed in the 1848 uprising in Paris. Common wisdom has it that the artist, a known conservative, intended the work not so much to evoke sympathy for the fallen but rather to be a warning to others against any further uprisings against the established order.
There is a “Gerome’s glimpse” in Captain Phillips, when, after the killing of the pirates you see the snipers putting their rifles in their bags...
Excellent video! Well done. When it comes to visual presentations on art, l prefer formats such as yours. I have grown weary of the ‘art expert or historian as celebrity’ format on TV where the presenter makes themselves the central focus. Far better to let the art itself be the main focal point. I also appreciate your softer, gentler narration.
Marshal Ney is well known and admired by Napoleonic War buffs but yes, he’s a largely forgotten figure of history outside the confines of warfare studies.
Marshal Michel Ney was really “The Bravest of the Brave.”
A veteran of plenty of Napoleon’s greatest campaigns, he led VI Corps and III Corps to victory with his fiery disposition and incorruptible courage, even when it led to some hairy situations.
Perhaps his most famous act during the Napoleonic Wars was his role in the Invasion of Russia. After the torching of Moscow and la Grande Armée’s unfortunate retreat, Ney and his battered III Corps led a successful rearguard campaign against the pursuing Russians, allowing what remained of the army to escape.
Legend says that he was the last soldier to cross the bridge at Konvo and exit Russia.
After the dire campaigns in Germany and France, Ney was the foremost general to approach Napoleon and confront him with the reality of his situation, convincing him to abdicate. He was loyal to his Emperor, but he was really more loyal to France and its people.
Upon the Napoleon’s return from exile, Ney was among the first to confront and stop the former Emperor, but following an astonishing example of leadership and charisma, Ney’s entire force surrendered to Napoleon, and Ney was forced to pledge his allegiance.
Following the Battle of Waterloo, an event where Ney is partly to blame for the army’s loss, the Bourbons returned to the throne and many in the government wished to make an example of many who defected to Napoleon.
Ney was the man they despised the most.
After a rigged trial where many of his former colleagues and generals pleaded against his execution, the outcome was grim. At the execution block, Ney stared at the men with no fear. Without a blindfold, he said to them,
“Soldiers, when I give the command to fire, fire straight at my heart. Wait for the order. It will be my last to you. I protest against my condemnation. I have fought a hundred battles for France, and not one against her.”
He then gave the order to fire.
The past months would be filled with pardons and reconciliations between similar Revolutionary figures and the Bourbons, so it was quite the tragedy what happened to Ney. I think the painting exemplifies this sadness: one of France’s brightest stars, face down into the mud and robbed of what he was truly owed.
Ney was brave, but he was also complicated. Napoleon made him one of the most important men in Europe, when Emperor returned he set up to capture him. He failed, and pledged his allegiance to hm once more. But then, he was one of the reasons why we lost at Waterloo.
It's hard to decide whether to hate him, or have pity and sympatize
Beautiful video
It was so interesting! Thank you!
Is it just me or did I see Napoleon in the background looking back at Marshal Ney
Fascinating
Actually, I am reading a book called La semaine sainte by Aragon telling the very story of the comeback of Napoléon in 1815, right after the famous betrayal of Generel Ney. He is depicted as a true traitor for pretty much the whole country, even though France is divided between those who swear allegiance to the King and those who are for Napoleon's return. This is my response to your comment at 4:30. Indeed, some people still care about French history, especially us french lol
I didn't know about that painting at all and the thumbnail definetly caughy my eye. Not the most virtuous painting of Jean-Léon Gérôme but for sure one of the most haunting ones. Thanks for the insights. Great video. Your point is absolutly valid but Ney facing the ground like this, without any dignity, may come from a political standpoint, Gérôme willingly disrespecting the memory of Ney.
Really interesting video, thank you for always choosing such interesting paintings to show us, these 4 were really all so interesting. Great stuff man, lookin forward to the next one
I don't know if Gérôme's exact intentions for "The Execution of Marshal Ney" are recorded anywhere, but for me it has a further meaning. Ney was a cooper's son, albeit the son of a master cooper and therefore a business owner rather than simply a worker, and he ascended to his military station. Despite the hero status he achieved during his life, to be able to challenge Napoleon himself to abdicate and yet win that argument, he had no security. He found himself in a position of trying to serve the apparent power, flipping allegiance from Napoleon to the Bourbons and back again, because he remained a servant. Despite demonstrating, if anything, a solid service record to France regardless of who led it, he is disposable. He survived the stupidity of Napoleon's invasion of Russia, through the most extraordinary danger, only to die at the hands of the next wave of incompetency. He comes from the street, rather than a mansion like so many decorated high-ranking military leaders, and he dies in it. The national power, represented by the soldiers, turns its back on his still-warm body. The house always wins.
To me, this painting is questioning the entire business of the citizen pledging their life to a power which only cares about itself. Even if you achieve the most you possibly can in service, you are ultimately disrespected by an executive class which is almost entirely insulated against the threats you face.
4:30 hey! Some of us love marshal ney
Great video as always! I love how atmospheric your works are. It really brings these paintings to live. though I would wish you talked a bit more about Ney and his exicution in detail. To me the painting shows just perfectly how quickly on can fall from grace and world history.
I think the reason the execution is so much more striking than the others is because of its subject being the body. With the others, the focus is the dying man and the worry of those around him, the landscape, or the energy of those leaving. Here, the soldiers are leaving, the event is mundane to them. We are brought face to face with death in this painting, an event that we experience with major emotion, like the painful loss of a loved one or the terrifying end of our own lives. When we hear about anyone else dying we think it's sad, but we're not affected, we're apathetic and we want to think that when we die it will matter, but from our own experience and reactions we know it won't. And here, we face our own mortality and, not only are we met with apathy, but that lack of dignity as well. I think this painting is so much more striking because somehow we see ourselves as the dead man and believe we've been denied that emotion and respect. To ourselves we are the whole world and it can't not matter when the world ends.
Not frozen in time. Time is back to moving on without you, again. That spark that is you is left behind. Just gone. The fear and the romance is stripped away after that pivotal moment and you are just no more. Left behind like so much debree. You have now done all you could ever do. You are marginal and dismissed. You are left to erode as a part of the landscape. The fragility that was you expressed. The noblest of deeds discarded and left to ruin. No longer to be anything more then the past, remembered or forgotten. Reminded that you were never meant not to be. If not remembered, if never painted, maybe you never were.
No matter your status in the world, how insignificant or important your life was, death treat us the same way. People move on right after you are a corpse. Most of these painting, the executioners are not even looking at the body right after, as if they have more pressing things in their lives, it's crazy.
Very well done
A thoughtful video & interesting to see the comparison of the 3 paintings.
A ignominious end to a man with humble origins that rose to be a pre-eminent marshal if not the premier in the Grand Armee. A brave if at times impetuous soldier. It could be argued that his death was a political assassination rather than execution as the post Napoleon rule needed an "example" to be set to establish the new order. There is no dignity in a death that leaves you lying face down in the mud & the top hat is a symbol of what has been lost: not only life but honour, status & reputation.
History has been kinder to Marshal Michel Ney.
Well done.
I find it particularly intresting, because it takes away any heroics or grandeur. The firing squad itself usually isnt portrayed as something heroic. A person getting executed, there's much room for variety. Defiance, Fear, Anger, Sadness etc. But in this case we get to see nothing of that. Just the result of a method to kill that's been around for centuries. I'd be curious if the same thing applies to paintings of battles or battlefields. I'd argue that showing the aftermath shows the reality of war and violence much more honest than the act of carrying out violence, because the latter more easily allows glorifying said violence.
I love that you covered Jean-Leon Gerome as I've always been fascinated by these particular works you mentioned. I think the strangeness in these paintings is the aftermath. The main event is over, the ones depicted in history books but here we're given the 'after' and it's unsettling. It's all fragility, silence, sadness. Caesar is half in shadow and easy to miss as the light is on the backs of the senators. As well, my understanding of Golgotha, the Jerusalem painting, is the figures are meant to be Jesus and the two thieves he was crucified between, making this painting all the more powerful. But none of the main players are in the actual painting. We have shadows and retreating figures too far away to make out. We don't see Ney's face. The duellist has dropped the murder weapon and we have no context for why they quarrelled. They're like accident scenes where everyone's already leaving to go about their business.
As a student of history, I care who Ney was. In fact, he is one main reason why Napoleon lost as Waterloo.
I know the story of Marcheal Ney but did not know about this painting.
Aww dude. This guy is Fuckin Fantastic. I will have to research now. I already am in Love with Eugene Carriere from one of your vid's and pretty into Hopper to. Carriere is the man who paints ghosts. Hahaha. If I wasn't homeless I would Patreon you. Anywho= I totally appreciate all of your effort and your insight in your video's is very on point. Thank you!
Had to get the Patreon after this video! Wish we had known about this channel when I was studying art history in college! Thanks for the great content!! I’m doing arts administration now if you ever have an opinion on that topic I’d be interested!:)
I think I found my favorite painter
I really liked this. To me it feels like these paintings are trying to demystify the death of these people. Executions like these are often connected to great stories about the lives of these people, how their deaths affected others and how it changed society. No matter how seemingly important these people were, in the moments right after their execution they were just another body laying in the mud.
I love this episode. Makes you ponder on how easy it is for many people to approve of death penalty, over looking the reality, lack of dignity, and humanity it brings. I would love to see the same depiction of death and dignity but with soldiers as the subject. Soldiers weren't punished, but governments force them to fight against each other on the battle field. Many are left behind on the ground.
Keep it up! Make moreeee!!!!!
The picture has multiple meanings that could and can be argued. The most disturbing part on this painting for me is that he is really well-dressed with fallen hat beside him, for me it seems like it depicts execution of old order and values and ideas, or ultimately it seems like a murder of civilization and order. And all the question it raises in my mind, from ultimate human insignificance, simplicity of life... It's great, and to complicated to be defined in sentence. It's definitely controversial. Great work and great and different content, I forgot to mention that, painting was too grimmy astounding
Ney '...fought a thousand battles for France and not one against her.' To execute Ney was a tall order in its day as many, especially within the military thought of Ney as France. To slay him, was to betray France. It is a declaration of martyrdom and betrayal. My guess anyways. There are some excellent vids about him if you are curious, try Epic History to start with.
this reminds me of the two depictions of Lucrecia by Rembrandt. in the first one he shows her in the motion of stabbing herself and in the second (done years later) you can see her after the act. i've always found the second painting more striking, her face full of regret and sadness doesn't compare to the first one.
Congratulations. I wholly approve of your concluding remarks.
I feel as if there isn't just a silence. I would presume that the purportrators actually nake quite a bit of noise just talking to eachother going about their business after the execution. That would create an interesting conflict between the silence of the dead and the -perhaps nonchalan - noises coming from the purportrators who are seemingly continuing going about their day in every painting
Great video, whats the music, its awesome
Amazing content bravo
Very good video, and also the comment by bapplejacks. Thanks.
I LOVE MARSHAL NEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! VIVE L’EMPEREUR VIVE LA FRANCE VIVE NAPOLEON VIVE MARÉCHAL MICHEL NEY
Would you consider doing Robert Henri as the subject of one of your videos?
The aftermath of a murder or an execution is death. You also see these images in films and shows in the past and present media. Violence doesn't accomplish anything but death in many cases.
Hi, can someone help me with the name of the violin song playing in the background?