Painters who became famous in Japan in the second half of the 20th century, such as Bernard Buffet, Cathelin, Brasilier, Michel Henry, and Cassignol, were all students of Chapelle, their teacher. Midi and Maurice Brianchon all graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris (commonly known as the Beaux-Arts). The only exception was Janssen, the son of Albanian immigrants, who graduated from a night school of drawing in Montparnas. For that reason, I had assumed that the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris was a training school for excellent painters.
When I meet painters in France, it's rare to find someone from the Beaux-Arts. Most painters are self-taught (autodidacte). I've wondered for several years where all the Beaux-Arts painters are. Recently, I started working with two painters from the Beaux-Arts: Martiphe Delaloff and Francis Bérangère. Both are educated painters. Delaloff is president of Le Salon (the French Painters' Association), and Bérangère is president of the painting department. Both are from the Beaux-Arts. Here, I'd like to give a brief explanation of the French salons.
The aforementioned Le Salon (French Artists' Association) is the oldest public exhibition in France, founded in the 17th century by Colbert, the chancellor of King Louis XIV. The art market dates back to the 17th century. Until around the 16th century, painters were craftsmen who mainly painted murals and portraits on request from royal aristocrats, churches, and wealthy people. For this reason, painters traveled around Europe and painted for their clients. In the 17th century, the apprenticeship system gradually collapsed, and painters sold the paintings they had accumulated at markets, and galleries began to appear in large cities. This was the beginning of the art market as a distribution product. In this historical context, the Louis dynasty held Le Salon once a year. The judges of Le Salon selected the painters who applied and only allowed the best works to be exhibited. At that time, all the paintings exhibited were purchased and kept by the royal family. Every year, painters sent their masterpieces to Le Salon. Then, in 1789, the French Revolution occurred, and with the end of the King Louis dynasty, Le Salon was no longer held. After a stormy decade in which both Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were executed, and Robespierre, who had sent thousands of people to the guillotine, was also guillotined, Le Salon was held again in 1799. The organizer at that time was not the royal family, but a private organization called the Society of French Artists. Today, 200 years later, Le Salon is still held by the Society of French Artists. The National Fine Arts Association is also a descendant of that salon. It is a salon held by the French Republic. The Salon des Indépendants is also a famous name. In the 19th century, artists who were not selected for the Salon created the Salon des Indépendants in 1884, without a jury, in order to have visitors directly evaluate their works in opposition to the conservative judges. Famous artists include Georges Seurat, Paul Signac, and Henri Rousseau. The Salon d'Automne was founded in 1903 by such renowned painters as Matisse, Rouault, Marquet and Bonnard in opposition to the conservative Society of French Artists and the Society of National Fine Arts. Later, Modigliani, Cezanne, Picasso, Braque, Renoir, Miro, Utrillo, Vlaminck, Redon and Van Dongen joined. The Salon des Comparaisons, which was established after the war, was founded with the aim of promoting exchanges between French and foreign painters. In addition, the watercolor and drawing exhibitions exhibit paintings other than oil paintings. These five groups are roughly the central salons in France.
In other words, both Delaloff and Bélanger are presidents of the traditional Le Salon. Both paint original paintings. Bélanger is also a professor at the Beaux-Arts. Bélanger complains, "Students these days can't paint good paintings even at 25 years old. I don't feel motivated. All the painters of the Renaissance created such works in their 20s. How can we explain this phenomenon?" He laments. It's off the record in France. In other words, it seems that the Beaux-Arts in Paris has stopped being a training school for excellent painters recently. Many semi-artistic fields have been born since the second half of the 20th century. In the past, there were seven arts, including painting. In other words, the arts field is six fields such as painting/sculpture, music, poetry/literature, dance, and theater, and finally film is added, making it seven fields. However, recently, artistic merit is being questioned in commercial design, industrial design, events, fashion, and even animation. Painters are self-employed. Of course, musicians and writers also run their own businesses. However, new fields such as design, events and fashion, although semi-artistic, are backed by huge capital. Students would rather work for a large company than become self-employed, which would not guarantee a living. Of course, there are also academic jobs in publishing or as school teachers. People do not want to become painters, which involves a lot of risk. In other words, art schools are no longer places to train artists.
Certainly, the field of art is not limited to painting, but is a world where talent and passion are key, and academic background is not important. In other fields, what you learn in school can be directly used, and academic background can help you make connections, but if a painter is not good at painting, no matter how much academic background or connections they have, they will not be able to compete. The same can be said for music, literature, and film. In the field of film, Akira Kurosawa graduated from Keika Commercial High School and did not graduate from university, and the genius Takeshi Kitano also dropped out of a second-rate private university. Poet Michizo Tachihara graduated from the Department of Architecture at the University of Tokyo, but his poetry is terrible. His poetry is like eating unflavored cotton candy. It seems that the charm of Karuizawa, a summer resort built in the 20th century, is mistaken for the charm of his poetry. Speaking of architects, Tadao Ando is a high school graduate and former boxer, but there is no architect in the world who does not know the name Tadao Ando. I have heard Tadao Ando give a lecture, and his speaking is genius.
In other words, the field of art, including painting, is a world where talent and passion are key, and academic background is not so important. In that sense, there is no objection to the fact that recent French painters are self-taught. Especially since the second half of the 20th century, it has become possible to learn painting in a variety of ways and hone one's sensibilities. Art schools are not the only place to learn painting techniques; rather, it is more likely that inspiration will be sparked outside of school. Each painter's technique is a trade secret, and in most cases the painter will not disclose it. If the painter has talent and passion, they will learn and create the techniques they need.
