Italian Town on a River 1850

Gustave Boulanger created this pencil on paper drawing, titled 'Italian Town on a River', at an unknown date. The Italian landscape was a popular trope for European artists in the 19th century. The country’s architectural ruins and sublime geography signaled a direct connection to Europe’s classical past. Here, the townscape is shown from a low vantage point, which emphasizes the river, bridge, and boats in the foreground. The lack of human presence in this image is particularly noticeable. The artist invites the viewer to appreciate the scene for its own aesthetic qualities, rather than the qualities of its population. This erasure mirrors the way European museums, galleries, and schools of art, from the 18th century onward, often dismissed non-European societies. To further understand Boulanger's intentions, we can look to archival material about the art schools, museums, and galleries that would have been available to him in France. Boulanger and his contemporaries' artistic choices reflected a wider socio-political context and emerging institutional approach to art.