Gustave Courbet took part in a revolutionary event and was condemned for it. Beyond this commitment to freedom, the question of a link between the great painter's ideas and his political battles is posed. Does such a link exist? Should one see in his painting a defense of the people, its participation in history or an art form that would be its own movement? Was his call revolutionary in manner? Or is the link between painting, political and moral so difficult to establish that one must separate the artist, the man and the political actor?
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