From Antiquity to Modernism · Tigers, Panthers and Leopards in painting

Sacred beast, predator, companion of Bacchus or force of color: tigers, panthers and leopards change roles over the centuries, but retain the same power of appearance.

Big cats occupy art history long before most European painters could observe them alive. Tigers, panthers and leopards first arrive through ancient texts, travel stories, menageries, skins and transmitted images. Mythology associates the panther and sometimes the tiger with the procession of Bacchus: Bouguereau, Franz von Stuck and Delacroix then use the animal to unite intoxication, sensuality and foreign power. In the 19th century, Géricault, Delacroix, Briton Rivière and Benjamin-Constant then used the animal to unite intoxication, sensuality and foreign power. In the 19th century, Géricault, Delacroix, Briton Rivière and Benjamin-Constant deepened the anatomical study and drama of hunting. In the 19th century, Géricault, Delacroix, Briton Rivière and Benjamin-Constant explored the anatomical study and drama of hunting. In the 19th century, Géricault, Delacroix, Briton Rivière and Benjamin-Constant explored the anatomical study and drama of hunting. Henri Rousseau invented a mental jungle based on botanical gardens and images printed; his tiger fights become theaters of vegetation. At Franz Marc, The Tiger no longer recounts a zoological encounter: the angular body and color construct the animal's inner energy. This collection thus follows a major shift, from the mythological symbol to the naturalistic subject, then from the animal observed to the modern form. The selection "Paintings of tigers, panthers and leopards" notably compares The Tiger and Self-portrait with a tiger and a lion. Its reading favors space.

The big cat forces each era to reveal its idea of nature: companion divinity, colonial threat, studied animal or pure energy architecture.