Serenity, illustration for Book VI of the Aeneid 

Henri Martin painted 'Serenity' as an illustration for Book VI of Virgil’s Aeneid. He used oil on canvas. Here, we find ourselves in the Elysian Fields, a paradise envisioned by the Romans, a serene afterlife for the virtuous, and a reward for civic duty. Martin's artistic style, influenced by both Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism, uses pointillist touches to give the painting an ethereal quality. France in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was in a state of social and political flux. The Third Republic grappled with questions of national identity, the role of tradition, and the place of the individual in society. Martin, deeply immersed in these debates, presents a vision of harmony that is both classical and modern. The Elysian Fields were a space where classical virtues were celebrated in a modern artistic language. As art historians, we can look to literature, philosophy, and political writings of the period to better understand the cultural forces that shaped Martin's vision.