From the seventeenth century, art exhibitions known as salons were important social and cultural events. Characterized by their floor-to-ceiling or “salon-style” hanging, these visually rich presentations fostered art appreciation and shaped the careers of emerging and established artists. This exhibition takes the form of a salon, featuring 49 paintings from the Morse collection.
Historically, salons had strict rules governing how the paintings would be displayed. History paintings, generally seen as the most important, were placed at eye level, while landscapes and still lifes filled the space above and below. Today, “salon-style” has become a general term to describe a type of densely packed, vertical display of paintings.
Enjoy groupings of portraits, landscapes, and still lifes, by artists such as John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), Martin Johnson Heade (1819–1904), and Carducius Plantagenet Ream (1838‒1917) to name a few in this rich and striking display that recalls a nineteenth-century salon.
