Gustave Courbet (1819-1877) is considered the most eminent exponent of realism, who boldly defied the idealizing conventions of 19th-century art. A spearhead of a socially committed type of painting, the artist also became known for his political involvement following the demise of the French Empire in 1870 through his role in the 1871 Paris Commune. In his portraits, landscapes and still lifes, the “dreamer” Courbet showed a quiet, contemplative world which appears in contrast to the rapid political and industrial changes of his time. With his self-confident demeanor, the importance he placed on artistic autonomy, his penchant for provocation and his revolutionary style of painting, Courbet shaped entire generations of artists and continues to do so to this day.
Following the political turmoil of 1871, Courbet planned a major presentation at the Vienna World’s Fair in 1873 which was never fully realized.The artist was only able to show seven works. Courbet did not travel to Vienna himself and decided to go into exile in Switzerland, where he died in 1877.
The retrospective at the Leopold Museum is the first solo exhibition dedicated to Courbet in Austria, featuring works from all periods of the artist’s oeuvre: from early, iconic self-portraits, and continues via his revolutionary paintings on themes like social realism and artistic bohemianism all the way to his sensually charged female nudes, landscapes, powerful seascapes, as well as renderings from his time in Swiss exile.
Overall, the exhibition features around 130 exhibits, among them some 90 paintings, 20 graphic works and a large number of archival material.
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