Books by Brendan Cole
This book is the first full-length study of the art and writings of Jean Delville. As a member of... more This book is the first full-length study of the art and writings of Jean Delville. As a member of the younger generation that emerged during the end of the nineteenth century, he was a dynamic leader of a group of avant-garde artists who sought to establish a new school of Idealist Art in Belgium. He was one of the most talented painters of his generation, producing a vast body of works that, in both scale and technical accomplishment, is unsurpassed amongst his contemporaries. In his extensive writings in contemporary journals and books, he pursued a singular vision for the purpose of art to serve as a vehicle for social change, as well as to inspire individuals to be drawn to a higher, spiritual reality. Delville’s thinking is heavily indebted to the hermetic and esoteric philosophy that was widely popular at the time, and his paintings, poetry and writings reformulate the main tenets of this tradition in a contemporary context. In this regard, his aesthetic and artistic goals are similar, if not identical, to those found in the writings and art of Kandinsky and Mondrian during the early twentieth century. By focussing on the historical and theoretical contexts of his paintings, as well as the practical application of his ideas through an analysis of several key works, this book provides a comprehensive and detailed study of Delville’s life, art and writings during his formative years that formed the mainstay of his art for the rest of his long and highly productive career. Unlike many of his contemporaries in the non-realist tradition, Delville sought to draw together the realities of the physical world with the metaphysical dimension through art that served, therefore, as a gateway between nature and the Absolute.
Book Chapters by Brendan Cole
Jean Delville. Art Between Nature and the Absolute, 2015
This is an extract of "Jean Delville, Art Between Nature and the Absolute" (CSP, 2105), Chapter S... more This is an extract of "Jean Delville, Art Between Nature and the Absolute" (CSP, 2105), Chapter Six.
This is an in-depth analysis of Jean Delville's great painting, 'L'Ecole de Platon' (Paris: Musée d'Orsay). The study covers the Platonic and neo-Platonic aspects of the work, the theme of androgyny, and the hermetic references and influences in the work, including its references to alchemy and the occult.
in Rosina Neginsky (ed.), "Symbolism, Its Origins and Its Consequences." Cambridge Scholars Publishing, pp. 129-46., 2010
Explores avant-garde formations during the fin de siècle in Belgium, specifically focusing on Jea... more Explores avant-garde formations during the fin de siècle in Belgium, specifically focusing on Jean Delville' s independent position against mainstream avant-garde exhibition Societies.
Papers by Brendan Cole
Paragone Past and Present, 2021
Jean Delville was one of the most talented artists of his generation, producing a prolific body o... more Jean Delville was one of the most talented artists of his generation, producing a prolific body of paintings, drawings, poetry, and essays. This essay explores the relationship between a previously unknown drawing by the artist, recently come to light, and a long narrative-poem published in one of his earliest anthologies: Les Horizons Hanté (1892), titled 'Azrael'. These early works reveal themes that were to become a mainstay of the artist's oeuvre concerning the mystery of death, transcendence, and the path of the Initiate.
Archives of Natural History, 2022
This paper reconstructs aspects of the pioneering botanical expedition of Edward Ernest Galpin (1... more This paper reconstructs aspects of the pioneering botanical expedition of Edward Ernest Galpin (1858-1941) accompanied by his wife, Marie Elizabeth Galpin (1859-1933), to the highland areas of the Eastern Cape Drakensberg in 1904. Details of the route, organization and logistics of Galpin's journey are described as well as a discursive record of his main botanical discoveries. KEYWORDS: Alepidea galpiniialpine flora-Cephalaria galpiniana-Felicia caespitosa-Lobelia galpiniisouthern Africasouthern Highland Drakensberg grassland.
Artibus et Historiae, (No 65, XXXIII), pp. 231-274, 2012., 2012
The Art Bulletin, vol. XCI, nr. 3 (September 2009), pp. 325-342. , 2009
Fernand Khnopff created some of the most enigmatic and allusive works in the Symbolist idiom. The... more Fernand Khnopff created some of the most enigmatic and allusive works in the Symbolist idiom. The images of the feminine—both positive and negative—and the androgyne dominate his paintings, yet their connection with the artist's intellectual and philosophical milieu are seldom pinpointed. Understood in terms of the dualist Idealist metaphysics of Schopenhauer, these works can be approached from an iconographic perspective to reveal how the central concerns for all Symbolist artists—duality and the reconciliation of opposites—are encoded in his paintings through these figures, particularly in Avec Verhaeren: Un ange (1889) and Art, or the Caresses (1896).
Religion and the Arts. Volume 11, no 3-4 (2007), pp. 330-371. , 2007
Jean Delville was not only a gifted painter, but also a prolific author, poet and polemicist. He ... more Jean Delville was not only a gifted painter, but also a prolific author, poet and polemicist. He is unique amongst his artistic contemporaries for having written extensively on the subject of Idealism in art. Idealist philosophy, as an intellectual influence, was fairly pervasive amongst contemporary non-realist authors, poets and painters; the core nineteenth-century influence in this regard was the writings of Arthur Schopenhauer. Delville, however, took a different path, particularly in his seminal book, La Mission de l'Art, and his various polemical essays on the subject, which reflect, rather, key ideas derived from the writings of the German Idealist, G.W.F. Hegel. Hegel's influence on late-nineteenth century non-realist art is understated in the literature. This paper analyses the main ideas of Delville's La Mission de l'Art in the context of Hegelian Idealism. It focuses on key areas of this tradition, specifically with regard to the nature of the Idea and the Ideal, the relation of the Ideal to the natural world, the relation between the Idea and the notion of BEAUTY and the special role of the artist in revealing the Idea in physical form.
La Revue des Musées de France, Revue du Louvre., 2006
PLEASE NOTE: This is a short article on the Idealist aspects of Delville's painting. Please see t... more PLEASE NOTE: This is a short article on the Idealist aspects of Delville's painting. Please see the final Chapter in my book "Jean Delville. Art Between Nature and the Absolute" for a detailed, and wide ranging, discussion of this painting, that includes the esoteric influences on its symbolism and iconography.
Avec L'Ecole de Platon (1898, Paris, Musée d'Orsay) Jean Delville a produit l'un des chefs-d'oeuvre de 'l'esthétique idéaliste', doctrine artistique fondée sur son admiration envers l'art de la Renaissance et de l'Antiquité, empreinte de philosophie platonicienne et des théories, alors en vogue, de Joseph Péladan, propagateur des idéaux rosicruciens s'incarnant dans la figure de l'androgyne. Ce tableau illustre l'esthétique théosophique ternaire de Delville et présente le nu comme une incarnation de l'esthétique idéaliste.
Exhibition catalogues by Brendan Cole
Impressions symbolistes. Edmond Deman (1857-1918), éditeur d’art. , 2011
Patrick Derom Gallery; Brussels - New York, 2010
Conference Presentations by Brendan Cole
Jean Delville and the Belgian avant-garde
Classicism, Idealism and the Symbolist Avant garde
Thesis Chapters by Brendan Cole
This is an early thesis examining the phenomenology of the image of the feminine in Symbolist Art... more This is an early thesis examining the phenomenology of the image of the feminine in Symbolist Art. Much of the work here formed the foundation for later published papers including, 'Nature and the Ideal in Fernand Khnopff's Avec Verhaeren: Un Ange and Art, or the Caresses'. The framework of this study could still be a stimulus for further research into this neglected area of the field of Symbolist Art and its symbolism and iconography. The end chapter is a draft paper that suggests strong links with the Jungian perspective on the nature of the anima. There are many historical and intellectual links between the iconography of Symbolist Art and Jung's ideas that are worth exploring further.
D.Phil. thesis: Jean Delville’s L’Esthétique Idéaliste: Art Between Nature and the Absolute (1887-1906), 2000
Chapter section from Doctoral research on Delville's teaching at the Glasgow school of art.
Draft papers by Brendan Cole
A discussion of works featured in an exhibition photograph of some of Delville's important late w... more A discussion of works featured in an exhibition photograph of some of Delville's important late works. Many of these images carry themes relating to Theosophy, which was an important framework for Delville's writings and paintings - including the notion of Karma and figures that bring spiritual redemption, i.e. 'light bearers'
As a result of translating Delville's poetry anthologies it was discovered that one of his major ... more As a result of translating Delville's poetry anthologies it was discovered that one of his major poems from his first anthology relates directly to a finished drawing, ‘L’Allégorie de l’Enfer’, that came up for sale in 2015. The current essay is an analysis of the drawing and discusses the correlations with his poem 'Azrael'.
This is a draft paper of work in progress on Jean Delville's life and work in exile in London dur... more This is a draft paper of work in progress on Jean Delville's life and work in exile in London during the Great War. Delville focussed his considerable talents in support of the War effort through his paintings, poetry and public addresses, and he became one of the central figures amongst the many Belgians in exile who voiced their opposition to Germany's aggression in Europe, and particularly in his homeland.
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Books by Brendan Cole
Book Chapters by Brendan Cole
This is an in-depth analysis of Jean Delville's great painting, 'L'Ecole de Platon' (Paris: Musée d'Orsay). The study covers the Platonic and neo-Platonic aspects of the work, the theme of androgyny, and the hermetic references and influences in the work, including its references to alchemy and the occult.
Papers by Brendan Cole
Avec L'Ecole de Platon (1898, Paris, Musée d'Orsay) Jean Delville a produit l'un des chefs-d'oeuvre de 'l'esthétique idéaliste', doctrine artistique fondée sur son admiration envers l'art de la Renaissance et de l'Antiquité, empreinte de philosophie platonicienne et des théories, alors en vogue, de Joseph Péladan, propagateur des idéaux rosicruciens s'incarnant dans la figure de l'androgyne. Ce tableau illustre l'esthétique théosophique ternaire de Delville et présente le nu comme une incarnation de l'esthétique idéaliste.
Exhibition catalogues by Brendan Cole
Conference Presentations by Brendan Cole
Thesis Chapters by Brendan Cole
Draft papers by Brendan Cole
This is an in-depth analysis of Jean Delville's great painting, 'L'Ecole de Platon' (Paris: Musée d'Orsay). The study covers the Platonic and neo-Platonic aspects of the work, the theme of androgyny, and the hermetic references and influences in the work, including its references to alchemy and the occult.
Avec L'Ecole de Platon (1898, Paris, Musée d'Orsay) Jean Delville a produit l'un des chefs-d'oeuvre de 'l'esthétique idéaliste', doctrine artistique fondée sur son admiration envers l'art de la Renaissance et de l'Antiquité, empreinte de philosophie platonicienne et des théories, alors en vogue, de Joseph Péladan, propagateur des idéaux rosicruciens s'incarnant dans la figure de l'androgyne. Ce tableau illustre l'esthétique théosophique ternaire de Delville et présente le nu comme une incarnation de l'esthétique idéaliste.