September Morn
Encyclopedia
Matinée de Septembre is a painting by the French artist Paul Émile Chabas
(1869–1937). Painted over three summers ending in 1912, it became famous when it provoked a scandal in the USA.
Chabas first exhibited the painting in the Paris Salon
of 1912, where it won a medal but did not create any sensation. The next year, when it was displayed in a window of an art gallery in Chicago
, Illinois
(USA), it came to the attention of the mayor of the city, Carter Harrison, Jr.
, who charged the owner of the gallery with indecency. The resulting court case, which the art dealer won, made the painting famous.
Two months after the conclusion of the Chicago trial, Anthony Comstock
(1844–1915), a self-appointed crusader against "vice
", threatened a New York City art dealer who was displaying the painting in his window. However, Comstock never followed up this threat with legal action.
The public relations
pioneer Harry Reichenbach
claimed to have brought it to Comstock's attention as a contract job for the targeted gallery. However, Reichenbach's claim has been questioned.
Lithograph copies of the artwork were popularly sold for over a decade, extending the success that followed the scandal
.
Ultimately, the painting would be labelled as kitsch
by critics who thought it lacking in interesting artistic features: contrast, coordinated lines, and a worthy subject. It has never lacked admirers, however, and copies of the image are still sold on postcards and reproductive prints.
The original painting is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York City
.
Paul Émile Chabas
Paul Émile Chabas was a French painter and illustrator and member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts.He was born in Nantes, and had his artistic training under William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Tony Robert-Fleury. He first exhibited at the Salon in 1890...
(1869–1937). Painted over three summers ending in 1912, it became famous when it provoked a scandal in the USA.
Chabas first exhibited the painting in the Paris Salon
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
of 1912, where it won a medal but did not create any sensation. The next year, when it was displayed in a window of an art gallery in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
(USA), it came to the attention of the mayor of the city, Carter Harrison, Jr.
Carter Harrison, Jr.
Carter Henry Harrison, Jr. served as Mayor of Chicago . The City's 30th mayor, he was the first actually born in Chicago....
, who charged the owner of the gallery with indecency. The resulting court case, which the art dealer won, made the painting famous.
Two months after the conclusion of the Chicago trial, Anthony Comstock
Anthony Comstock
Anthony Comstock was a United States Postal Inspector and politician dedicated to ideas of Victorian morality.-Biography:...
(1844–1915), a self-appointed crusader against "vice
Vice
Vice is a practice or a behavior or habit considered immoral, depraved, or degrading in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a defect, an infirmity, or merely a bad habit. Synonyms for vice include fault, depravity, sin, iniquity, wickedness, and corruption...
", threatened a New York City art dealer who was displaying the painting in his window. However, Comstock never followed up this threat with legal action.
The public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
pioneer Harry Reichenbach
Harry Reichenbach
Harry Reichenbach was a US press agent and publicist who dreamed up sensational publicity stunts to promote films. He worked both for actors, as an agent, and for the studios as a promoter....
claimed to have brought it to Comstock's attention as a contract job for the targeted gallery. However, Reichenbach's claim has been questioned.
Lithograph copies of the artwork were popularly sold for over a decade, extending the success that followed the scandal
Succès de scandale
Succès de scandale is French for "success from scandal", i.e. when a success derives from a scandal.It might seem contradictory that any kind of success might follow from scandal: but scandal attracts attention, and this attention is sometimes the beginning of notoriety and/or other successes...
.
Ultimately, the painting would be labelled as kitsch
Kitsch
Kitsch is a form of art that is considered an inferior, tasteless copy of an extant style of art or a worthless imitation of art of recognized value. The concept is associated with the deliberate use of elements that may be thought of as cultural icons while making cheap mass-produced objects that...
by critics who thought it lacking in interesting artistic features: contrast, coordinated lines, and a worthy subject. It has never lacked admirers, however, and copies of the image are still sold on postcards and reproductive prints.
The original painting is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.