Voyeurism and spectacle were key to the wealthy upper classes of the Second Empire.
1852 - 1870
videos + essays
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Alfred De Dreux, The Emperor’s Horse
This portrait of Napoleon III’s favorite horse tells an important story of art theft and repatriation.
Fashion and Politics in Franz Xaver Winterhalter’s Portrait of The Empress Eugénie surrounded by her Ladies-in-Waiting
Fashion's power to reveal the nuances of political power, gender, and ethnicity.
Thomas Couture, Romans of the Decadence
Like other academic artists, Couture draws a subject from ancient Rome, but chooses decadence, not heroism.
Charles Garnier, The Paris Opéra
Seeing and being seen: the opera was a place of voyeurism and spectacle among the prosperous classes of the city.
Haussmann the Demolisher and the creation of modern Paris
Haussman bulldozed the ancient, winding streets of the medieval city to bring law, order, and hygiene to Paris.
