Episode Monvoisin - Lights and Shadows
Following the revolutionary winds of the mid-19th century, and like many other adventurous Europeans of his time, the Gascon painter Raymond Monvoisin packed his paintings and brushes and sailed to the Americas in search of fame and fortune.
Arriving in Chile in 1843, and invited by the government to establish and run the country’s first Academy of Fine Arts, Monvoisin found a society freshly emancipated from the Spanish Empire, avid for French news and culture, which they considered its main cultural influence.
Monvoisin’s work portrays the European vision of the Americas in the 19th century, a mixture of utopia and reality marked by enlightenment.
His lack of success in Europe may well have been due to the very high artistic quality and fierce competition present in the old continent at the time. In America, however, his sometimes-unfinished technique and somewhat outdated vision were well appreciated.
Therefore, it is no wonder he found enormous popularity as a portraitist within the elite circle, and even to this day his portraits can be read as a “Who’s Who” of the high society of the time.
And yet, Monvoisin was much more than a portraitist of the wealthy class.
The exhibition 'Episode Monvoisin', in the Museum of Fine Arts of Santiago, tries to combine this artistic phase with other dimensions of his creation, with mixed results.
According to its curator, Roberto Amiga, the exhibition’s title is due to the fact that it forms part of a larger narrative, "Monvoisin in America, reasoned cataloging of Raymond Quinsac Monvoisin and his disciples," an international research project which includes Chile, Peru, Brazil and Argentina.
The exhibition, located in the Matta room of the museum, presents 66 original works, between finished oils and studios, with works in small, medium and large format.
Many of these works are exhibited on loan from private collections or regional museums, including the National Historical Museum, the Museo Ciudadano Vicuña Mackenna, the Palacio Cousiño Museum, the Central Bank, the Museum of Decorative Arts, the Colchagua Museum, the O'Higginian and Fine Arts Museum of Talca, the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Holy Conception, the Museum of the Carmen in Maipú and the Embassy of France in Chile.
In its forecourt. and as an introduction, there is an informative text in English and Spanish as well as a historical timeline of the artist’s epoch.
In this reduced space there are also two screens with informative videos about the historical context and Monvoisin’s country house in Chile; however, the visitor must watch them standing in the middle of the transit of other passing visitors, so they are almost unnoticed and unused.
Once inside the hall, the first work that catches our eye is a beautiful oil on porcelain miniature portrait of Monvoisin (by his wife, the artist Domenica Festa), which almost greets the public at the entrance.
Organized in a gigantic room divided by moving panels, the exhibition does not establish any particular direction to follow, without any defined starting or ending point, leaving free will to the public.
However, this freedom also implies a lack of narrative and content, which gradually becomes more evident as one goes along.
In general terms, the exhibition is divided into two parts: Monvoisin’s portraits, and his works based on historical themes, with an interlude marked by some of his works of religious themes, located in a cubicle that suggests a chapel, whose entrance is flanked by the oils of Saint Joseph and the Virgin.
However, the presence of an unlit cubicle created with semi-transparent fabric located near the entrance is intriguing.
Printed on the top of these fabrics are subtle reproductions of six frescoes that once adorned one of the rooms in Monvoisin’s country house (room which the cubicle intends to represent), once attributed to the painter. However, today their authorship is disputed, being attributed instead to Clara Filleul.
Because of this, as well as for not using this space in a more productive way (for example, to accommodate the video screens cornered in the anteroom), this is a wasted space that most visitors instinctively avoid.
The walls of the exhibition, painted in red, blue and white, refer to Monvoisin’s French tricolor, but also to the Chilean flag, and a special section in green refers to his works of nativist themes.
Monvoisin rarely signed his works or included their completion date, so most of them have only an estimated date of creation.
It is interesting to observe the uneven and sometimes inconsistent technique of the artist, with portraits of almost photographic fineness -in particular his treatment of the ladies’ mantillas and jewels-, and others with obvious lack of perspective, anatomical study, or even of proportions.
These defects may perhaps be attributed to the speed with which Monvoisin undoubtedly had to work due to his high demand, since most of these oils -as well as many others not included in this exhibition- were created over a period of no more than 10 years.
Unfortunately, the decision to place the work’s data at the edge of the wall in which they’re grouped makes it difficult for visitors to identify them. Added to this is the little to no information provided about each one, the themes represented, or the characters portrayed.
Quite often, the poor illumination makes it even harder for the visitor to access the information displayed.
Although the exhibition compiles a good number of works, some of the artist’s most recognized oils are missing, such as "Portrait of General Manuel Bulnes Prieto", "Ali Pacha and Visiliki", "The last night of the Girondines", or even works belonging to the permanent collection of the museum, such as the beautiful "Landscape".
Episode Monvoisin is a unique opportunity to see in one place works which are usually out of the reach of the public, and seeing them in their original colors and sizes -as opposed to printed reproductions- gives them a special dimension that impacts the visitor.
One of the most impressive is "Portrait of Dámaso Zañartu, his wife and twelve children" (1844), a huge oil painting measuring 202 x 303 cm, one of the largest and most ambitious group portraits created at the time.
Conceived as a way to display the wealth, lineage and power of the Zañartu family, even today it impresses the visitor.
Portrait of Dámaso Zañartu, his wife and twelve children" (1844)
But if the opulence of such a distinguished family group is blinding, Monvoisin does not miss the opportunity to make a subtle comment by placing the youngest son in the background, the only one who turns his back on the viewer, entertained in hoisting a kite and completely foreign to the tinsel of his family or the demands of his rank.
Such details abound in Monvoisin’s works but are not commented on any of the exhibition notes.
In fact, the exhibition misses the opportunity to delve into topics that would have enriched it by providing a wider context of the work displayed, such as a study of the society of the time, the different pictorial styles embraced by Monvoisin, his artistic influences, the particular historical context in which the works were created, etc.
“Juana la Loca y la Muerte de Felipe el Hermoso” (1867)
Another of the works that draws our attention is the oil "Juana la Loca y la Muerte de Felipe el Hermoso” (1867), part of Monvoisin’s works based on historical themes, and the only grisaille oil of the whole exhibition.
The magnificent oil paintings "Caupolicán, Prisionero de los Españoles" (1859), "Elisa Bravo en Cautiverio" (1858), and "El Naufragio del Joven Daniel" (1859) impress the visitors by their dimensions more than by their themes, and the studies displayed next to these last two allow the visitor to see the evolution of Monvosin’s artistic vision until its final realization.
Monvoisin’s work is very extensive, as well as his work and influence within the academy, so there is plenty of material to be explored and analyzed. But since the exhibition does not include guided tours or associated events (talks, conversations, etc.), this lack of content becomes even more noticeable.
Monvoisin was a travelling artist, who lived and worked in several countries, including Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and France. Therefore, gathering the bulk of his works is a titanic endeavor rarely seen, and exhibitions like this are unique opportunities to see his work in person.
In spite of this, exhibiting Monvoisin’s works without further exploration of these or of the themes related to his art and epoch is a missed opportunity to enrich the visitor’s visit, especially for those who seek and expect a wider dimension to such an important cultural effort.
Event: Episode Monvoisin, A French Painter in 19th Century Chile
Location: National Museum of Fine Arts. Sala Matta.
Address: Jose Miguel de la Barra #650 (Parque Forestal), Santiago, Chile.
Dates: April 11 to August 31, 2025
Cost: Free of charge
More information: https://www.mnba.gob.cl/cartelera/episodio-monvoisin-un-pintor-frances-en-el-chile-del-siglo-xix
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