Propaganda and Manipulation through Painting. Antoine-Jean Gros and Napoleon’s Campaign to Syria.

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46661/atrio.10629

Keywords:

Antoine-Jean Gros, Napoleon, Syria, Jaffa, Orientalism, Historical Painting

Abstract

During his expedition to Egypt, Napoleon conducted a military campaign in Syria which, like the one in Egypt, was a failure. During the siege of Jaffa and Acre the French army suffered a plague and some of Napoleon’s decisions were criticized and revealed by the English press. In a complicated political context, Napoleon turned to art, and especially painting, to silence rumours about his attitude and to appear as a protector of the soldiers before he was crowned Emperor. Antoine-Jean Gros’ paintings of the campaign in Syria reflect the propaganda and manipulation of what really happened and lay the foundations for an orientalism, while historical painting takes on a new and different dimension.

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Author Biography

Antonio Pérez Largacha, Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR), Logroño, España

Professor in the Department of Social Sciences of the International University of La Rioja (UNIR). He is a university teacher training fellow at the University of Alcalá de Henares, where he wrote his doctoral thesis and was a professor in the Department of Ancient History, later becoming a teacher at the University of Castilla la Mancha. He is the author of numerous works on the culture and civilization of ancient Egypt and its reception by the West, from Antiquity to the present day, such as Egyptomania. The Myth of Egypt from the Greeks to Us (1997), or more recently coordinator of the scientific meeting held at the National Archaeological Museum, Egyptomania. Collecting and counterfeiting of ancient art. From the eighteenth century to the presentday, held in March 2023.

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Published

2024-12-16

How to Cite

Pérez Largacha, A. (2024) “Propaganda and Manipulation through Painting. Antoine-Jean Gros and Napoleon’s Campaign to Syria”., Atrio. Revista de Historia del Arte. Sevilla, España, (30), pp. 130–149. doi: 10.46661/atrio.10629.

Issue

No. 30 (2024)

Section

Articles

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Copyright (c) 2024 Antonio Pérez Largacha

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