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the Belgian Symbolist artist Jean Delville was born in Leuven in 1867 and died in Bruxelles, 1953. The above work ( 6 meters wide) is at Musée d'Orsay, Paris He is generally refered to as a mystic, an idealist, and an occultist who sought, through his words and paintings to revive the ancient traditions of the Cabbala, Magic, and Alchemy. He was the founder of the Salon d’Art Idealiste, the Belgian equivalent to the Rose & Cross Salon in Paris and the Pre-Raphaelite movement in London. Among his poetry and other literary works is La Mission de l‘Art (1900) in which he wrote extensively about the nature and purpose of Art, viewing it as a catalyst for the uplifting of mankind. He saw the true artist more in the likeness of a spiritual teacher or prophet: Plato's School, a decoration intended for the Sorbonne but never installed there, is a striking work in many respects. Its monumental size and its ambitious message – an interpretation of classical philosophy seen through the prism of the symbolist ideal – set it apart. The manifesto makes no secret of its references, from Raphael to Puvis de Chavannes, but envelops them in the strange charm of a deliberately unreal colour range. The ambiguity emanating from this fin de siècle Mannerism knowingly blurs the borderline between purity and sensuality. here is a musical slideshow with some more of his works The reason why I place a work of his online here and now is that a Dutch / South African artist, who was greatly influenced by the work of Delville, Bougereau, and the lifsestyle in the years of Plato, has fallen victim of the renewed wave of intolerant - religion based - suppression, that artists, in our once so tolerant country, have to endure. The artist in question has been accused of producing child porn and his work, result of many years of study and a labour of love, has been confiscated by the Amsterdam District Attorney. Of course we will vigourously resist and fight this infringement on the freedom of thought and art and article 1 of the Dutch constitution. Ad
last imagerotation: feb 1st '09.
I'm not trying to be balanced
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