To Robert Schumann 1894

Henri Fantin-Latour created this lithograph, “To Robert Schumann,” as a tribute to the famous German composer. It embodies several key themes of French Romanticism, specifically the idea of the artist as a visionary. In this image, we see a gathering of ethereal women and angels who pay tribute to the bust of Schumann. Note the prominent scroll, which associates him with literary masterpieces such as ‘Paradise and the Peri,’ ‘Genevieve,’ ‘Manfred,’ and ‘Faust.’ Fantin-Latour made many such lithographs, which were widely sold and distributed amongst the middle classes. This speaks to the growing commercialization of art during the nineteenth century, as well as the rising status of the artist as a public figure. To understand this artwork more fully, we might look at the changing role of artistic institutions such as the Paris Salon, the rise of the art market, and the growth of a middle-class audience for art. The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.