Samuel Morse - Gallery of the Louvre [1831-33]

Samuel Morse - Gallery of the Louvre [1831-33], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

This picture directly confronts the problems Morse (American, 1791 – 1872) perceived in the New York art scene: a flood of fake European masterpieces on the market and insufficient training for artists. As an antidote, he created an Americanised Kunstkammer featuring himself and others, including his friend the author James Fenimore Cooper, studying, making, and discussing art in a gallery. In effect, Morse brought home the collection of European paintings he thought most vital to the success of American art at large. He began with the Salon Carré at the Louvre, and the Grande Galerie beyond, and stripped it of its installation of modern French paintings and re-hung it as a gallery of Italian Old Masters. He placed himself in profile at centre, training an American student to see the world of art from his perspective.

[Oil on canvas, 187.3 x 274.3 cm]