Cultural Look: La Belle Epoque

Continuing with inspiration from Midnight in Paris, I wanted to highlight one more Golden Age that is mentioned in the movie; La Belle Epoque. This time period can be ranged from the early 1870s to the onset of WWI as a period of artistic inspiration. It's golden decade occurred during the 1890s and was centered in Paris, France. During this time many masterpieces of art, literature, and theater were created. It was also a time of new cultural expression.

Historically for the French people, it was an era of peace. Following their defeat at the Franco-Prussian War, the French Third Republic was established in 1870 to rebuild their infrastructure. With the aid of new industrial technologies and sciences it became a time of optimism for the French people. Paris once again began to thrive as the capital, and soon cultural expression began to unfold within the city. Notable post-impressionist artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Gaugin, and Edgar Degas made their home in Paris. It also was a center for musical theater and operettas bringing forth notable names such as Johann Strauss III, Igor Stravinsky, Erik Satie, Claude Debussy, Gabriel Faure, and Maurice Ravel.

At the World Fair of 1889, Paris displayed it's new culture of art to the world.  The highlight of this fair was the new architectural wonder, the Eiffel Tower. It was a monument unlike anything before it;s time and served as a beacon of modern art.

Also during this time the nightlife of Paris took to a new level, with the emergence of the Moulin Rouge cabaret in 1889. This nightclub was unlike anything prior to it, specializing in the art of burlesque, a promiscuous play of music, dance, comedy, and drama. And in 1893, the Maxim restaurant of Paris opened as a very unique and popular spot for artistic entertainment. This site was renown for its Art Nouveau and brought out many famous artists such as Marcel Proust, and Georges Feydeau.


The Portrayed Artists of the Bella Epoque

Henri de Toulouse: (1864-1901) French painter and illustrator considered one of the most well known painters of the post-impressionist period. He was also considered a key figure in France's golden age of the 1890s known as the Bella Epoque. Growing up as a child he had a growth disability and was unable to partake in the physical activities of his peers, thus he turned to art. His work became a defining feature of France's Post-Impressionist movement, and he was closely associated with the legendary Vincent Van Gogh. He died at the very young age of 36 due to a life of alcoholism.

Portrayal: He is portrayed by Vincent Menjou Cortes as a quiet man sitting at the Moulin Rouge working on his illustrations. He is joined by Gil and Adriana in the film, and later by Edgar Degas and Paul Gauguin. He seems perplexed and curious with the entire social setting.

Edgar Degas: (1834-1917) French painter often considered a father of impressionism in the likes of Claude Monet and Renoir. By the time of the Bella Epoque he was already a well known painter, however was still influential to the post-modernist movement. He considered himself a realist painter and specialized in portraits and the art of dance. Although he despised many of his contemporaries and lived a solitary life he still collaborated with other famous impressionist peers such as Manet, Pissaro, Cezanne, Gaguain, and Van Gogh.

Portrayal: He is portrayed by Francois Rostain as an older man accompanying Gauguin. He joins Henri, Gil, and Adriana to discuss the golden ages of art.

Paul Gauguin: (1848-1903) French painter who was very influential to post-modernist art during the Bella Epoque. He went thru various styles and phases from impressionism to cloisinism to synthenism to primitivism. He was closely associated with Vincent Van Gogh, and spent 9 weeks painting with him in Arles, France. His Night Cafe at Arles was a well worthy competition to Van Gogh's similar piece. Some of his early post-impressionist paintings in Paris were his best work in my opinion. He suffered bouts of depression and alcoholism and died at the young age of 54.


Portrayal: He is portrayed by Olivier Rabourdin and joins Henri, Gil, and Adriana at the Moulin Rouge. While Adriana states that this is a golden age they are living in, Gauguin states it would be much more exciting to have lived during the Italian Renaissance.

Other artists mentioned in the film:

Auguste Rodin: (1840-1917) French sculptor considered one of the greatest sculptors of the modern era with many notable works. His statue of The Thinker is regarded as one of the best known sculptures of all time. He was inspired during the 1870s while visiting Italy and seeing the famous work of Michelangelo and Donatello. He moved to Paris in 1877 where he used this inspiration to create his own independent style of realism.

By 1880 he was a well regarded name in Paris, and contributed to the Belle Epoque through art salons and commissions. His magnum opus came as a commission for a museum to create a portal. He used inspiration from Dante's Divine Comedy to create his Gates of Hell, an elaborate group of sculptors which featured two of his most famous ones, The Thinker and the Kiss. Rodin spent four decades working on this project. By 1890 he was a world renown figure, and many of his sculptures were displayed at the 1900 Paris World Fair.

Henri Rousseau: (1844-1910) French painter considered a leading figure of post-impressionist naive and primitive art. His work is truly original as it incorporates masterful impressionist techniques with simplistic designs of color and nature. He specialized in jungle and tropical settings of which he was inspired from books and the botanical gardens of Paris. The Sleeping Gypsy is Rousseau's most famous piece, considered one of the most recognizable paintings of the modern era. He spent most of his artistic career living in Paris. The first half of his life, he worked as a tax collector and did art on his free time. After the death of his wife in 1890, he retired from his job to focus primarily on art.

He moved to the art district of Paris, known as the Montparnasse in 1893 that was already booming with artistic inspiration from the Belle Epoque. It was here that Rousseau painted his masterpiece of the Sleeping Gypsy in 1897. He collaborated with many famous artists of the time and went on to inspire many as well including Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali. He was a self taught genius whose art was not truly recognized until after his death in 1910.

Vincent Van Gogh: (1853-1890) Although he is not mentioned in the film, his famous painting of the Starry Night serves as the poster theme. The famed Dutch artist is considered a master of post-impressionism painting and perhaps one of the greatest painters of all time. He began to emerge as an artist of still life paintings in Netherlands from 1882-1886. Following this he moved to Paris in 1886, at a studio of Montmarte where he took his art to a whole new level. He began to collaborate and meet many emerging artists of the time such as Henri de Toulouse, Georges Seurat, and Paul Signac. He also became close friends with painter Paul Gauguin, and after Paris, he moved to Alres where he completed some of his masterpieces.

Van Gogh had a specialty for painting sunflowers, portraits, cypresses, flower orchards, and wheat fields. However he constantly suffered from depression and his madness continued to grow worse by this time. At one particular instance after an argument with Paul Gaugin, he had a psychotic breakdown and cut off his ear. Following this episode he admitted himself into the mental asylum of Saint Remy where he continued to paint masterpieces. It was here that he painted his magnum opus of the Starry Night as he looked out of his window at the St. Paul monastery.

He was an extremely troubled genius, and his madness got the best of him in 1890, when he committed suicide with a gun in a wheat field. He died at the very young age of 37, and his paintings were not truly celebrated until after his death. However his post-modernist art became the staple of the Belle Epoque. He is one of my favorite painters of all time, and his Starry Night, The Cafe Terrace, and the Starry Night over the Rhine are some of my all time favorite paintings.  

Other Artists of the time worth mentioning:

Paul Cezanne: (1839-1906) Famed French painter he was very influential on post-impressionism of the Belle Epoque. His early work dated back to the 1860s, of which he was more of a impressionist painter, and had close associations with other famed painters of the time such as Camille Pisarro. Together they developed a new transition into what has been labeled as the post-modernism movement. It wasn't until the 1880s and 1890s of the Belle Epoque, the Paul painted some of his best work such as The Card Players.

Georges Seurat: (1859-1891) Famed French painter, well regarded for his post-impressionist work. He was born in Paris, and achieved early success at the start of the Bella Epoque. He helped found the Society of Independent Artists, a collaboration of regarded artists such as George Seurat and Signac. He died at the very young age of 31, however achieved many inspirational paintings during his brief time such as the Bathers at Asneires and Sunday Afternoon at the Island of La Grand Jatte.

Camille Pisarro: (1830-1903) Famed Danish artist who was very influential in the transition of modernism to post-modernism. He spent many of his influential years in Paris during the Belle Epoque developing a unique style of pointillism with other renown artists such as Seurat and Signac.

Georges Faydeu: (1862-1921) Famed French playwright considered the father of cabarets and comedic theater. He wrote over 60 plays of absurd and comedic themes, which spanned the golden years of La Belle Epoque.

Erik Satie: (1866-1925) Famed French composer and pianist who was very influential on the avant garde theater of the Belle Epoque. His most famous work of the Gymnopedies paved the way for a new style of minimalism and repetitive music. At the time Operettas and musical theater were transitioning from drama to comedic entertainment.


Maurcel Praust: (1871-1922) Famed French novelist, whose prominent novel, In Search of a Lost Time, is regarded as one of the finest novels of the twentieth century. He spent his teenage and younger years studying in Paris at the height of La Belle Epoque, and begun work on this classic novel in 1909.

Claude Debussy: (1862-1918) Famed French composer considered a very prominent musician of the modern impressionism era. He studied music in Rome where he was inspired by Franz List, and thus settled in Paris at the height of the Belle Epoque, to make his own way. He began working on his most famous piece, La Claire de Lune, in 1890 and completed it in 1905.  

Gabriel Faure: (1845-1924) Famed French composer well known for his romantic works of Pavane and his Requiem. He spent his middle years at the height of the Belle Epoque composing at operattas and teaching music lessons. This eventually lead him to a much cherished post as the head of the Paris Conservatoire in 1905.

Jules Cheret: (1836-1932) Famed French lithographer and painter whose poster art became the media of the popular culture. Many of his posters became prime advertisements for the most popular nightclubs such as the Moulin Rouge and Folies Bergere. His art was popular long before the Belle Epoque, whoever he used the age to gain further fortune. His early work was considered an influence on Henri-de Toulouse.


Emile Zola: (1840-1902) Famed French author well regarded for his innovative naturalist style of writing. He was inspired and influential to the years of the Belle Epoque. He also played an important role in exonerating the wrongfully accused Jewish soldier, Alfred Dreyfuss by supporting him through his journalism. He is best known for his novels, Les Rougoun-Macquart and Theresa Raquin.
Camille Saint-Saens: (1835-1921) Famed French composer well regarded for his Romantic compositions. He reached his most prominent heights towards his later career during the Bella Epoque. He was closely associated with the emerging modern composers of the time such as Gabriel Faure, however he remained true to traditional approach. Some of his finest works were homages to Richard Wagner and Franz Listz. He is best known for his Symphony No 3 and Carnival of Animals which were considered reolvutionary works that finely represented the golden age that was The Bella Epoque.

Maurice Ravel: (1875-1937) Famed French composer highly regarded as a prominent figure of modern impressionist music. He studied with Gabriel Faure and Claude Debussy in Paris, however did not emerge until the later years of la Belle Epoque. His famed Bolero was not released until 1928, however it can be derived from inspiration during this era in Paris.

Settings of the Bella Epoque

The Gilded Age: Following the Civil War, The United States began a reconstruction phase that eventually lead them on a path to economic prowess. By the turn of the century they were entering a new golden boom of commerce as a global market to be reckoned. This economic boom has become known as the "Gilded Age". Famous American author, Mark Twain coined this clever term as a reference to the growing economy that hid the country's social problems.

While America became the front runners of economic growth, they were not the only ones to share in the booming market. England was also thriving during the Victorian Era as was Germany during the Wilheminism Era. This fourising global fervor was also shared by the country of France, economically and artistically and it later became referred to as their "Belle Epoque" French for Beautiful Age.

The Eiffel Tower: It's hard not to think of Paris these days without having the Eiffel Tower as it's main symbol. It was completed at the height of the Belle Epoque as a homage to the French Revolution (100th year anniversary). The project was designed by engineer Alexander Gustave Eiffel, of who the monument was named after. Construction started in 1887 and was completed 2 years later as an entrance way to the Universal Exhibition of 1889. It was seen as an architectural wonder unlike anything of it's time, a true beacon of modern art.

The Eiffel Tower was regarded for it's groundbreaking architecture yet also it's astonishing height which at the time became the tallest building in the world; a title it held for over 30 years until the Empire State Building was completed in New York City. To this day it remains one of the most recognizable structures in the world and a classic demonstration of this artistic renaissance.

Art Noveau: The defining artistic style of the Belle Epoque was Art Noveau, which means "New Art". This was a total form of art displayed in architecture, fine arts, decoration and fashion throughout Paris at the end of the 19th century. It was considered a pivotal transition from the older style of romanticism to a newer modernistic style.

The defining features of Art Noveau are it's strong curves sometimes considered "whiplashes". It often displays vivid colors and infuses an element of the Japanese art of woodblock prints known as Ukiyo-e. This modern style was used by many emerging painters and sculptors of the time such as Gustav Klimt, Lautrec and Rodin to name a few. The art also played a major role in artistic advertisements and posters of the era.

Operettas and Salon Music: During this age, the overly dramatic and romantic music of operas, was lightened with simpler melodies. This style of music consisted of brief songs from the piano or violin, sometimes repetitive in form. Operettas served as the new form of opera house, a much more mild performance with hints of drama, yet also less serious environment. Often comedic twists were laced into
the work, derived from the popular theater and cabarets of the time. Many notable composers partook in the musical scene of the Bella Epoque such as Erik Satie, Claude Debussy, Gabriel Faure, Camille Saint-Saens, and Maurice Ravel. 

Folies Bergere: This music hall was established in 1869 as an opera house, years before the start of the Belle Epoque and the popularity of the Moulin Rouge. It is English for "Crazy Shelter", as it became known as a hotspot for the wild parties of Paris. By the 1890s it became a cabaret dance hall, in a similiar style as the Moulin Rouge. It featured the same platform of seductive modern dancing women. One of the most prominent stars of this club, happened to be an American named Loie Fuller. Her modern dance attracted the attention of many painters of the time such as Luatrec, Rodin, and the famed poster artist Jules Cheret. ,

Moulin Rouge: Another of the defining features of this Beautiful Epoch was the new style of cabaret dancing featured at the Moulin Rouge. This nightclub opened in 1889 and featured new styles of vaudeville entertainment and dancing. It operated almost like a restaurant or a dance hall, with food and drinks and seductive dancing all around. The professional dancers and entertainers were known as courtesans and revered for their beauty. Notable performers such as Liane de Pougy, La Goulue, and Jane Avril, served as inspiration for the famed painter Henri Toulouse-Lautrec.

It was at the Moulin Rouge that the famous can-can dance began, which consisted of a line of women in elaborate costumes and skirts, dancing in high energy and kicking their legs up in unison, in a very suggestive manner. There were also stages and sketches and musical grand shows always playing. The nightclub was often notorious for it's promiscuous scandals, which often included nude women in some of it's extravagant shows. Nonetheless it was always the place to be, often competing with the older Folies Bergere. The original platform of the Moulin Rouge paved the way for modern theater and nightclubs. It captured the spirit of the Belle Epoque, and to this day it remains a major tourist attraction of Paris.

Maxims: This popular bistro was opened in 1893 and quickly became one of the most famous restaurants in Paris. It had a very fashionable dinning room covered in themes of Art Nouveau. It attracted many notable artists of the time such as Marcel Prous, and Georges Faydeu.  It is portrayed in Midnight in Paris as a classy setting almost like a ballroom with soothing music, dancing, and fine dining.