75 masterpieces explore the status of childhood between the 14th and 20th centuries at the Musée Marmottan-Monet this spring, bringing together a distinguished roster of artists – Manet, Cézanne, Monet, Renoir, Matisse, Picasso, Dubuffet and more.
Early works feature royal children dressed up like adults, before the Enlightenment began to explore the concept of childhood more fully. The 18th century gave children a central place in society, and therefore in its paintings – aristocratic ladies had no hesitation in having their portrait painted while they were breastfeeding, making a public statement about their thriving bloodlines. The era marked a triumph of familial sentiment, when childhood was considered a separate mode of being – Jean Siméon Chardin, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Berthe Morisot made children the focus of their works, painting them playing, studying or simply dreaming. 19th century artists like Georges Millet, Eva Gonzalès and Jules Bastien-Lepage, in contrast, used images of children to create poignant works that denounced social injustices – child labour, prostitution and rural poverty.
In later works the likes of Picasso, Jean Lurçat and Gaston Chaissac incorporated a childlike simplification of forms and focus on primary colours into their oeuvres, demonstrating the role of innocence in genius.
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