Turn Of The Century Salon April: Naturalism and Impressionism

During April I read two books from Émile Zola for my Zoladdiction event; one of them is The Masterpiece, which relates quite a lot about the turning of the century, or specifically pointing to the birth of Impressionism. Zola was one of several young artists in Paris who originated the new wave of arts. Having been saturated by the “dark and grim” Romanticism arts, these energetic young men (Zola, Paul Cezanne, Claude Monet and Edouard Manet were among them) introduced more natural, bright sunshine into paintings. I am quoting a few passages from the book, which I believe was Zola’s own thoughts.

“…Courbet’s “black” painting is already beginning to feel rusty and reek of a musty studio where the sun never enters… Do you see what I mean? Perhaps that’s what we need now, sunlight, open air, something bright and fresh, people and things as seen in real daylight. I don’t know, but it seems to me that that’s our sort of painting, the sort of painting our generation should produce and look at.” ~The Masterpiece, p. 37.

Claude Monet, Impression, soleil levant (Impression, Sunrise), 1872

Impressionist painting characteristics include relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage of time), ordinary subject matter, inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and experience, and unusual visual angles. [wiki]. And Claude Monet with his painting “Impression” has inspired the name of the new style: Impressionist.

Not only in paintings, Zola believed that the naturalism and impressionism should occur also in other branches of arts: music, sculpture, literature, and architectural.

“Surely all the arts were intended to march forward together, and the process of change which was taking place in literature, painting, and even music, was going to lead to a renewal of architecture too. If ever there was a century in which architecture should have a style of its own, it was the century shortly to begin, the new century, new ground ready for reconstruction of every kind, a freshly sown field, the breeding ground of a new people. Down with the Greek temples, down with the Gothic cathedrals; belief in legends was dead! Down too with the delicate colonades and the intricate tracery of the Renaissance, that Classical revival crossed with medieval art… What was wanted was an architectural formula to fit that democracy, the power to express it in stone, building which it could feel to be its own, something big and strong and simple, the sort of thing that was already asserting itself in railway-stations and market-halls, the solid elegance of metal girders, developed and refined still further, raised to the status of genuine beauty, proclaiming the greatness of human achievement.” ~The Masterpiece, p. 139.

The Card Players, an iconic work by Cézanne (1892)

Zola also emphasized the condition near the end of the century with a vast rebuilding scheme took place, which also touched the land prices and many people attracted in investments. In short, Zola portrayed the early decadence of the society at the end of the 19^th century through The Masterpiece.

“We are living in a bad season, in a vitiated atmosphere, with the century coming to an end and everything in process of demolition; buildings torn down wholesale; every plot of land being dug and redug, and every mortal thing stinking of death. How can anybody expect to be healthy? The nerves go to pieces, general neurosis sets in, and arts begin to totter, faced with a free-for-all, with anarchy to follow, and personality fighting tooth and nail for self-assertion.” ~The Masterpiece, p. 359

Turn Of The Century Salon March Prompt: Mrs. Dalloway

For the salon, I have read Mrs. Dalloway (here is my review, and here is what I've worked on for my WEM project). It was my first encounter with both Virginia Woolf and the self consciousness style, and I admit that I could not enjoy it as much as I have expected. Here are few inquiries from Katherine for the salon:

How would the plot of the novel had altered if it had been set in a different era?

The main plot would have not altered too much even if it had been set in a different era, I think. Yes, it is set right after the war, but the problems occurred to the main characters could happen too in a different situation. The general theme of Mrs. Dalloway was a search of life meaning and freedom, which is still relevant to these modern days, and I think, in the earlier centuries too.

What are some adjectives that define what you feel the book is saying?

Snob, indifferent, confused, dependent.

Find a work of art or music within the same time-period that reflect the book and share it.

A Day in June, 1913, by George Bellows

The woman in the right corner brings flowers, which reminds me of Clarissa Dalloway, who went to buy flowers on one sunny morning in London...

Turn Of The Century Salon - January

This year Katherine from November’s Autumn is hosting an interesting classics literary event called Turn of The Century Salon. The idea is to have “a special club but one where everyone feels comfortable and happy and welcome to share their ideas, wanderings, and discoveries through Literature be you an expert or reading your first work that's been graced by that title: Classic.” Referring to the title, our discussion for the Salon would be focused on the classics written between the late 1880s through the early 1930s.

The salon will take place through the year of 2013, and for our first “meeting”, of course, we will first introduce ourselves to each other….

What draws you to read the Classics?

Hmm…this is always a delicate question, I think it’s because I have a passion to read great pieces from great authors that people from centuries had read and appreciated them. I want to be part of them, but also, I’m interested in learning much about human life, history and existence.

What era have you mainly read? Georgian? Victorian? Which authors?

I think I have been reading more Victorian than others so far, with Charles Dickens dominating the list (he happens to be one of my favorite authors too).

What Classics have you read from the 1880s-1930s? What did you think of them?

Germinal – Emile Zola

The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald

To Have And Have Not – Ernest Hemingway

Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad

Name some books you're looking forward to read for the salon.

Both La Bete Humaine and The Masterpiece from Zola; I have been very eager to read more from Zola, that I can’t make up my mind which one should I read first… ;)

Which authors do you hope to learn more about?

Ernest Hemingway, I have only read two of him in Indonesian-translation, so now I’m excited to read the original English version. I have 2 books of him for this year: The Old man and The Sea and A Farewell To Arms.

Which literary characters are you most akin to?

Until now, I think, Isabel Archer—the heroine of The Portrait of A Lady. She is a woman of freedom who likes to do things her own way, she doesn’t like to be told by others what to do.

Which authors do you love?

Emile Zola, I’m a big fan of him :)

Is your preference prose? poetry? both?

Prose; I’ve never been successful with poetry.