Elle était plus belle que les rêves 1892

Maurice Denis created this pastel drawing, titled 'Elle était plus belle que les rêves', sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. It encapsulates the Symbolist movement’s interest in dreams and subjective experience. Denis was a key figure in the Nabis, a group of Post-Impressionist avant-garde artists who saw themselves as mystics and sought spiritual meaning in art. Notice the ethereal treatment of the girl's face, which is suggestive of the Symbolist ideal of beauty as something beyond the material world. The title, which translates as "She was more beautiful than dreams," underscores this. Produced during a period of rapid social change and growing secularism, such art attempted to satisfy a longing for spiritual values that were not easy to find in the modern industrial world. To better understand the social context from which Symbolism emerged, scholars have looked at everything from popular literature and religious tracts to the writings of contemporary art critics. Ultimately, the study of social and cultural history reveals the crucial role art plays in reflecting and shaping our values.