Le parti catholique et la peinture religieuse des années de « l’ordre moral » (1873-1879)

Abstract

Religious painting and Catholics in the “moral order” years (1873-1879). Mac Mahon’s presidency (1873-1878) was a favorable period for religious painting, but also a disturbed political and religious time. While the State and town councils led a very active policy in favour of it, the Church persevered in its silence about what was being painted in churches. However, no truly religious painter was acknowledged by the Catholic art theorists. In spite of the obvious lack of orthodoxy, the priests did not protest. Even Catholic critics accepted with an open mind some experiments that theorists morally banished from the field of religious painting, in particular, naturalism and eclectism. Unexpectedly, this genre flourished at that time, outside strict orthodoxy and with the silent agreement of the clergy.