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Monumental Intolerance: Jean Baffier, a Nationalist Sculptor in Fin-De-Siecle France
Monumental Intolerance Jean Baffier a Nationalist Sculptor in FinDeSiecle France Author:Neil McWilliam The first book-length study of an artist and political agitator who championed a nativist vision of France "McWilliams book is a rich, enlightening study of a neglected artist and much beyond that. Baffiers ideas, his sculptures, even the pattern of his thwarted career embody essential aspects of French social thought and ideas abo... more »ut art at the end of the nineteenth century."Jacques de Caso, University of California, Berkeley Little known today, Jean Baffier (18511920) was never far from the headlines during his own lifetime. Born into a poor peasant family, he became a self-taught sculptor whose work ranged from decorative objects to portrayals of peasant life and public monuments. But Baffier would probably not have received wide public attention if he had not also become a folklorist, a promoter of regional culture, and a militant nationalist with beliefs so violent that he attempted a political assassination. Monumental Intolerance explores the full gamut of Baffiers activities and shows that he was pursuing a vast scheme of national purification and rebirth. Neil McWilliams discussion of the historical issues surrounding Baffier opens an extraordinary perspective on the culture wars and political struggles of a turbulent period in French history. . This book will interest the art-historical community and historians of fin-de-siäcle France.« less