Carnival Evening by Henri Rousseau (Interpretation and Analysis)

Carnival Evening
Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art

I’ve written several times about my affection for Henri Rousseau’s work. Rousseau, a Frenchman, was a self-taught artist. His lack of formal education resulted in a highly original and recognizable style that I find very intriguing.

Although Rousseau was most famous for his jungle scenes, Carnival Evening is a great example of his work. As the name suggests, it is a night scene. A man and woman emerge from the woods, dressed in festival costumes. The trees tower skeletally behind them, and a strange hut stands in the background, adorned with a streetlamp and a somewhat randomly placed face. As the Philadelphia Museum of Art notes, “an air of mystery pervades this wintry forest landscape.”

This ambiguity is a feature of Rousseau’s work (and modern art in general). As the history of art progresses, art tends to become more ambiguous and less driven by narrative. Carnival Evening gives the viewer a great deal of freedom of interpretation. Essentially, the piece can mean whatever you want it to mean.

However, I think it’s worthwhile to draw attention to the carnival aspect of the scene. The idea of carnival is a common one in Western art. In general, carnival symbolizes the world upside down; traditionally, the carnival season was the only time of year that people could break social boundaries and challenge societal norms. In art, carnival is used as a vehicle of truth, a way to expose what is truly going on under the veneer of civilized society.

Rousseau’s painting is a glimpse into this topsy-turvy world. Here, however, the fundamental “truth” of the piece is obscured. Rousseau’s carnival world is dark and mysterious, highlighting the deep and fundamental unknowability of life itself.

Disclaimer: I’m not an art historian or an expert on this topic. The above is my opinion, based on my interpretation of my foreknowledge of art and history. If I’ve done any additional research, I’ll note it above.