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During the early stages of the French Revolution, republican deputies of the French Parliament walked out and reassembled at a nearby tennis court for the purpose of taking an oath to oppose the monarchy. It became known as the Oath of the Tennis Court . Jacques-Louis David was asked to paint a large picture commemorating this event. The picture was never completed because soon after the revolution, the revolutionaries began fighting among themselves. Some who were originally portrayed in the picture fell from favor and had to be eliminated. Some who were not there had to be included. David was asked to falsify history and redo the painting, and he was perfectly willing to do it. David also painted a portrait of the eminent scientist, Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier (1743-1794), who was later beheaded. During the revolution, he immortalized one of the most important revolutionary figures, Marat . After the Republican Revolution gave way to the dictatorship of Napoleon, he became an enthusiastic supporter of the Emperor. Does an artist have a moral responsibility to portray history in an accurate light, or are artists merely propagandists who serve at the whims of the ruling parties?
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Neoclassical
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