The Easel

Explore the Weird World of the Symbolists at the Guggenheim

In Belle Epoque Paris, some artists were articulating the emerging modern world. Others sought refuge in spiritual themes, loosely grouped around Symbolism. This latter movement held a series of Salon exhibitions but their work was kitsch – it was an art dead end. The Sublime, though, is a concept with enduring appeal. It has regularly been revisited in the last century, most spectacularly by Mark Rothko.