The Romans in their Decadence

The Romans in their Decadence

The Romans in their Decadence (French: Les Romains de la décadence, also translated as Romans During the Decadence or Romans in the Decadence of the Empire) is a painting by the French artist Thomas Couture, depicting the Roman decadence. It debuted as the most highly acclaimed work of the Paris Salon of 1847, a year before the 1848 Revolution which toppled the July Monarchy.^[1] Reminiscent of the style of Raphael, it is typical of the French 'classic' style between 1850 and 1900 today analyzed within the wider current of academic art.

It now belongs to the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.^[2] It was etched by Edmond Hédouin (1820–1889).^[3]

Description

Couture's composition depicts the perceived moral and political decline of the later Roman Empire through the inebriated and exhausted aftermath of a large orgy, contrasting the weakness and degeneracy of its participants against the statues of gods or emperors proudly displayed around the classical Roman architecture of the painting's setting. Some figures continue to dance among the reclining mass while one man at the right drunkenly addresses a statue, disrespectfully hanging from its arm. Only three appear to have avoided participating in the orgy, consisting of one figure seated contemplatively upon a plinth to the left, and two upright men overlooking the scene from the right.

The painting is noted for its subdued use of color and its depiction of the human body.^[4][5]

Reception

The Romans in their Decadence was one of the two most critically successful works to be exhibited at the salon that year, alongside Woman Bitten by a Serpent. Renowned critic Théophile Gautier compared the realism of the painting to styles practiced in Northern Europe at the time rather than Couture's native France,^[6] while Edmond Texier praised aspects of the work but ultimately considered the painting's scope insufficient to capture the tragedy and dishonor of the era.^[4] Napoleon III considered the painting's message an attack on the republic and brutally condemned the work.^[7]

References

1. Linda Nochlin, Gustave Courbet: A Study of Style and Society (New York: Garland Publishing, 1976), 129-30.
2. “Musée d’Orsay: Thomas Couture Romans during the Decadence.” Accessed March 3, 2020. https://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/collections/works-in-focus/painting/commentaire_id/romans-during-the-decadence-2105.html?cHash=ca15e83794.
3. "Courtauld Gallery: L'orgie Romaine (Romains de la décadence), after Thomas Couture".
4. Edmond Texier, Tableau de Paris : ouvrage illustré de quinze gents gravures d’après les dessins de Blanchard (Phar.), Cham, Champin, Forest (Eug.), Français, Gavarni, Gérard-Séguin, J. J. Grandville, Lami (Eug.), Pauquet, Renard, Roussel, Valentin, Vernet (Hor.), etc., etc., t. 2, Paris, Paulin et Le Chevalier, 1853
5. Bertrand Lançon, Les Romains, Paris, Cavalier bleu, coll. « idées reçues », 2015, 127 p., 18 cm (ISBN 978-2-84670-121-1)
6. Théophile Gautier, Salon de 1847, Paris, Collection XIX, 2016
7. Jean-Paul Bouillon (dir.), La Critique d’art en France, 1850-1900 : actes du colloque de Clermont-Ferrand, 25, 26 et 27 mai 1987, Paris, CIEREC, 1989