Les buveurs d'absinthe (The Absinthe Drinkers): Jean-François Raffaëlli.

Abstract

La Belle Epoque was an era of peace and prosperity in France that lasted from the defeat of the Paris Communein1871 totheonsetof theFirstWorldWar.Thearts and sciences flourished during this golden age: Edgar Degas painteddancersat theParisOperaBallet,EmileZolawrotenovels about nature and nurture, and Louis Pasteur developed a “germ theory” of infectious diseases. The economic success of La Belle Epoque was dependent in large part on the contributions ofworking class communities such as themunicipality of Asnieres-sur-Seine, several kilometers from the heart of Paris, where Jean-Francois Raffaelli (1850-1924) painted Les buveurs d'absinthe (The Absinthe Drinkers) in 1881. Inthispainting, twoshabbymennursetheirdrinks inthepatio of awinebar. The spirit is absinthe, turned cloudyyellow in theglassbyaddingwater toproduceamicroemulsion.Thecrisp angles and parallel lines of the patio fencing convey a sense of entrapment in a tedious existence. One of the men extends a paint-smearedhandacross the table. Inhispocket is apainter’s rag—perhapstheartistputhimself inthispaintingtoexpressempathyformenwhowereoutofwork. Intheearly1880s,Raffaelli was invitedbyDegas to joinhisexhibitionofoutsiderart.Degas wasattunedtothecircumstancesofworkingpeople—hepainted balletandcircusperformers(JAMAcover,April 15,2009)toshow howmucheffortwas required toput ona show—butRaffaelli’s subjectswere even lower on the social scale. Raffaelliwasborn inParis in1850.Asayoungmanheserved in amilitia that briefly controlled Paris after the fall of the Second Empire.When the French Army took back the city, he enrolled in the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and was mentored by the Frenchartist Jean-LeonGerome.Raffaelli’s firstpaintingswere historicalscenesandlandscapes.In1876hechangedsubjectsand format topaintpicturesof individualsonthemarginsofsociety, such as ragpickers and declasses. Ragpickers were scavengers who collected cast-off clothing fromwaste bins and sold it for anyprice they could get. They lived inbeggar camps andcould rarelyafford tobatheor shave.Declasseswere formermembers of themerchantclasswhohadlost their livelihoodsandcouldn’t orwouldn’t take jobs as laborers. Theywore suits tatteredwith ageandoveruse,asseeninLesbuveursd'absinthe (itsoriginaltitle wasLesdeclasses). Thesettingof thispainting is awateringhole near the railway line inAsnieres, an industrial district ofweedy fieldsandshacksonthenorthernedgeofParis.ThoughRaffaelli came from a well-to-do family, he identified with people who were trapped inpoverty; the subject ofhisArtist Painting (circa 1879-1880)isadisheveledpainterinadirtycoatcompletingaportraitofamanwithasimilarappearance.Thepublicwasintrigued byRaffaelli’sportrayalof theunderclass.His skill at representationwascomparedfavorablytotheworkofFrenchrealistpainter Jean-FrancoisMillet, andLesbuveursd'absinthewasspecifically praisedatan1881exhibitionofpaintingsbyDegasandotherupand-comingartists. In1884Raffaelliheldasoloexhibitionof153 paintings, etchings, and sculpture, and for the catalog he contributed an essay on character and beauty. It isdifficulttodiscernthecharacterofthemeninLesbuveurs d'absinthe.Apparently theyhavenothingbetter todothanwhile awaytheafternoonwhenmostofParis ishardatwork.Their attire indicates they may previously have been shopkeepers or clerks.Perhaps they lost theirpositions in theeconomicdepressionof the 1870sor gambled their livelihoods away.Many contemporaryviewerswouldhaveattributed theirdownfall to the adverse effects of absinthe, and Raffaelli probably shared that opinion.Absinthehadagreateralcoholconcentrationthanwine, and itsbotanical flavoringswerereputedtohavehallucinogenic properties. Itwasalsomoreaffordablethanwine,whichexplains the irony of the sign on thewall of the bar promoting “Vins de Bourgogne.”Ostensibly toprotect thepublic fromahealthhazard, France’s winemakers joined forces with the temperance movement to lobby forabanonthemanufactureandsaleofabsinthe,andpaintingsof intoxicateddrinkersbyRaffaelli,Degas, and others were presumed to support this proposition. Before composingthesceneinLesbuveursd'absinthe,Raffaellimadeobservationsofabsinthedrinkers in theirneighborhoodsandhospitals anddranka fewglasseshimself toexperience its effects— heclaimedthatthreedrinksofabsintheproducedsymptomsakin to madness. In retrospect, it is likely that absinthe sold in the 1880s was no more harmful than any other cheap and widely available alcoholic beverage. Whetheralcoholconsumptionisacauseoreffectofthemen’s idleness inLesbuveursd'absinthe, it doesappear theyaredrinking topass the time. Inhismemoirofvagrancy,DownandOut in ParisandLondon, theBritishnovelistGeorgeOrwelldescribesthe boredom of having nowhere to go and nothing to do. Orwell’s trampscouldn’taffordtopurchasealcohol, sotheysmokedcigarettes and loafed until eveningwhen a homeless shelterwould openitsdoors. InLesbuveursd'absinthe, theonlybreakinthemonotonyof a dreary day is themeticulous constructionof a cigarettefrompaperandtobacco.Oneofthemenrollsacigarette, the othermanwatcheshimmakeit,andviewersofthepaintingstand quietlyobserving themboth. Itwascustomary for realistpaintingsofthe1800stomarkthepassageoftime.Viewersweremeant to imagineasequenceofevents thatprecededandfollowedthe activity inthecomposition.Paintingarealistpicturewasadeliberate, thoughtful task,andviewingthe finishedworkcouldalso takesometime.Before long,however, theprocessofmakingand viewingpaintingswouldpickupspeed, andrealismwouldgive way to abstraction and the instant impression.