Zicht op de Juli-zuil op de Place de la Bastille 1844

Philippe Benoist made this print of the July Column in Paris. The column commemorated the 1830 July Revolution. But what exactly was Benoist trying to communicate? Well, the image creates meaning by drawing on cultural references. Notice the column is placed in the center of the Place de la Bastille. In 1789 revolutionaries stormed the Bastille prison, marking a key event in the French Revolution. After 1830, this location was intentionally chosen to celebrate the triumph of liberty. The monument itself is a visual statement of progressive ideals. However, there's always more to the story. The July Revolution replaced one king with another, leading to the creation of a constitutional monarchy. The public role of art, especially monuments, is to legitimize the present, and to downplay the past. To understand this print more deeply, you could research images of revolutionary Paris and visit the Place de la Bastille. It's a good reminder that art is always contingent on social and institutional context.