Le Découragement de l’artiste 1895

Henri Fantin-Latour made this drawing, called ‘The Artist’s Discouragement,’ with graphite on paper, probably in France during the late 19th century. It depicts a male artist, looking despondent in front of his easel, while several female figures hover around him. We see the artist slumped in a chair, head in his hand. The artist seems paralyzed by self-doubt, a state that many artists experience. The presence of muses, or allegorical figures of inspiration, suggests both the lofty ideals to which the artist aspires and the way those ideals might be crushing him. Fantin-Latour was active during the rise of the modern art market, when artists were increasingly independent of official institutions like the Salon. However, this independence brought new pressures, as artists had to find their own patrons and navigate the complex world of galleries and critics. To understand this image better, one could research the art market in 19th-century France, the role of the Salon, and the changing status of the artist in modern society. Examining Fantin-Latour's other works and writings, as well as contemporary criticism, might reveal more about his attitudes toward the institutions of art.