Friday, October 18, 2013

The Oak and the Reed (1816)

Achille-Etna Michallon: The Oak and the Reed

This is an allegorical painting based on a fable by Aesop. The artist, Michallon, was the son of the sculptor Claude Michallon. He studied under Jacques-Louis David and Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes. In 1817, Michallon won the inaugural Prix de Rome for landscape painting. He traveled to Italy in 1818 and remained there for over two years. This trip had a profound influence on his work. Before he had much time to develop what he had learned however, he died at the age of 25 of pneumonia, a tragedy which cut short the life of a talented and well respected artist who could have gone on to win lasting fame. Though it is often disputed, it is thought that at one time, Corot was his pupil. [Wikipedia]

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