The above image depicts Joan of Arc at her now infamous Inquisition
Trial, dating back to 1431. A record of the trial itself was kept, although
artists and historians are often left having to interpret their own illustration
of the event. Many key details of Joan that modern readers are quite interested
in knowing were not recorded, such as her exact clothing (although we do know the
gender specific clothing she donned) and the precise length of hair (she cut it
– but how short?) The above image was painted by Louis Maurice Boutet de
Monvel, a French artist, with the specific piece dating back to 1911. Aside
from being a stunningly appealing visual, the audience is left with many of the
artist’s own interpretations of Joan. The image shows Joan to be an authoritative
figure, presented to be literally and physically standing in her own defense. The
artist is also creating subliminal messages regarding Joan’s political
alliance, as her clothing reflects a royal blue, indeed similar to the blue of
the shield of French royalty and Charles “the Dauphin.”
The scene of the trial itself as depicted by Boutet de
Monvel is also telling, as Joan’s accusers are all male, stoic looking, and appear
either upset or bored with Joan’s seemingly passionate defense. A religious-looking
male presides over the trial in the far back center of the audience,
illustrating the indeed religious component of Joan’s trial. Finally, the
artist chose to include the presence of scribes in the background of the trial,
a truly essential component of the event, and many are surprised to learn of
existing trial records dating back to the days of Joan. Overall the artwork is
both extremely beautiful and extremely telling about how artists and even
historians are continually evaluating and reevaluating the history of Joan, and
how, like so many others, the events that took place in 1431 are still being discussed,
evaluated, and construed. It is images and artwork much like this that reveals
to historians the interconnected ways history, fiction, and illustration often
work alongside and opposing one another. Thus, artwork much like Boutet de
Monvel’s will be instrumental in my paper when analyzing popular culture depictions
of the trial, which has allowed (sadly) for a slew of misinformation and misinterpretation
of Joan over the centuries.
Louis Maurice Boutet de Monvel, The Trial of Joan of Arc, 1911. Oil and gold leaf on canvas, 29.75
in x 67.5 in. Corcoran Gallery of Art,
Washington, D.C. William A. Clark Collection.
Reproduced from Artstor: http://www.artstor.org
A very interesting choice of art on Joan! You do a great job of analyzing the details of the painting and questioning how popular culture depicts famous figures in history. I specifically appreciated your mention of Joan's clothing- the symbolic blue- as well as the pointing out of the scribes, an important attribute to note in any depiction of Joan's trial. Overall, you make a persuasive argument for looking at Joan's trial more closely, if I am curious to know where your scholarship may take you on the spectrum of continued evaluation of Joan.
ReplyDeleteDoes this image--in the period of nationalism which placed value on Joan--match with other images of popular culture. How will you use this image in your paper to represent misinformation? What do we know about the trial itself. Looking forward to that future focus.
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