Rousseau

For a Wednesday activity, Abe, Ella, and I went to the Grand Palais to see the Rousseau exhibit. I have never seen such a large collection of Rousseau's work assembled in one place, and it was very interesting to see the progression of his work. Maybe this is well known, but I learned that Rousseau never traveled to Africa to paint his jungle scenes. In fact, he never left Paris. He painted the plants and animals of the jungle based entirely on things he saw at Paris museums such as the Natural History Museum and the Jardin des Plantes - which may be one reason why, when you really look at them, his animals look very implausible. He showed a painting each year at the Salon of Independent Painters - of very variable quality, and received mixed reviews from the critics. Ella enjoyed searching for African animals in the paintings (they are studying Africa at school, and she is deeply fascinated), but was not crazy about the images of one animal eating another. It was nonetheless inspiring to see what the perserverance of a simple customs agent, with few opportunities for formal training or travel (and with perhaps not that much raw talent - but then, who am I to judge!), could produce in a lifetime.