Édouard Brandon: A Jewish Painter in 19th-Century Rome

The Parisian Édouard Brandon (1837–1897) is known for the Jewish-themed paintings of his mature career. As a young man, however, he spent seven years in Rome engaged in a Catholic art commission. In 1856, Brandon learned that the newly-formed Congregation of Holy Cross, based in France, had leased the Casa di Santa Brigida in the Piazza Farnese, and he approached the Congregation’s Superior with an offer. Brandon proposed to paint the room where the 14th-century mystic St. Bridget of Sweden had lived, illustrating events in her life and from her Revelations. Brandon did not reveal his Sephardic Jewish heritage and faith to Father Basil Moreau until the work was underway. During the 1860s, Brandon exhibited more than a dozen of these Santa Brigida compositions in the Parisian Salons, although his two medals were awarded for other works. The Jewish press, such as Archives Israélites and L’Univers Israélite, mentioned them in generally positive ways, with some ambivalence, and some relief when he evolved thematically. In Rome Brandon became acquainted with Edgar Degas, who invited him to participate in the 1874 show at Nadar’s studio. Brandon exhibited five pieces there, with both Catholic and Jewish subject matter; three of works shown by Degas, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s The Dancing Class, were owned by Brandon. Despite his anti-Semitism, Degas’ private collection included Brandon’s The Schoolmaster and the Student; when sold at his death, however, Brandon’s collection held nothing by Degas.