The major literary works (La Chanson de Roland, Le Misanthrope, Eviradnus, Mimi Pinson, Le Cid, Phèdre, Pantagruel, La Cigale) 1890

Albert Maignan’s, The major literary works, now at the Petit Palais in Paris, appears to be created using traditional painting methods, likely oil or tempera on canvas or panel. The gilded frame, with its smooth surface, gives the work a sense of bourgeois aspiration. What's interesting is the contrast between the gestural freedom of the painted vignettes, and the rigid structure of the gold framework. You can see this in the way the paint is applied loosely, with visible brushstrokes adding texture and movement to the scenes depicted. The subjects are taken from classic literature, but the painting feels contemporary in its casual rendering. This tension between traditional subject matter, painterly execution, and a gilded frame connects to the way that art in Maignan's time reflected the values of the rising middle class – seeking to ennoble itself through association with high culture, yet also desiring novelty and a modern aesthetic. It reminds us that even seemingly straightforward paintings are bound up with social context, labor, and the aspiration to prestige.