Waldemar on Art Mysteries

[ardcarp]

Did anyone see the programme about Seurat last night on BBC4 ? Waldemar Janusczak has an eccentric presentation style but it is, in its way, authoritative. And his illustration of how Seurat's 'invention' of pointillism was influenced by a scientific work on colour was I'm sure, er, spot on.

However his own ideas about the mysteries involved in Les Poseuses were, I suppose, exactly that; his own ideas. They struck me as a bit far fetched. Is this the BBC's efforts to prove all previous theories about everything to be absolutely wrong? (Think Lucy Worsely...if you can.) I was equally unsure about his linking La Grande Jatte with Une Baignade, Asnieres.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000gp0h

I've absolutely no specialist knowledge of fine art, and would be interested to hear others' views about Waldemar's views! It was slightly annoying that he kept referring to the painting as Le Poseuses. It rather dented my faith in his credibility as an art critic!

[Serial_Apologist]

It was slightly annoying that he kept referring to the painting as Le Poseuses. It rather dented my faith in his credibility as an art critic!

Well he's a bit of a one hmself, isn't he?! I've seen him in a previous series, but not this one, yet.

[Belgrove]

Well it was entertaining but a rather fevered interpretation that smacked of the need to say something new and provocative. The subjects of Seurat’s painting have a greater connection with those portrayed in individual works by the classicist Ingres rather than individuals appearing in La Grande Jatte. The greater revelation was Manet’s purloining from the Judgement of Paris for his Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe.

[gurnemanz]

I enjoy his programmes and found the Seurat and the previous one about Van Gogh with the bandaged ear offered plenty of new insights and good entertainment. Like Jonathan Meades, he is very much into parodying his own style, which might irritate but I find fair enough.

As pointed out above, it was astonishing a) that he kept saying le poseuses and b) that it got though unedited. He also felt the need to explain that 'to pose' has two meanings in French, as if it didn't in English as well.