This question is incomplete, here´s the complete question.
Based on 'Marat addressing the people', the painting by Louis-Leopold Boilly, describe the scene around him. Account for his great popularity.
What kinds of reactions would a painting like this produce among viewers in the Salon?
Answer:
In this painting, Jean-Paul Marat is shown speaking to a huge congregation of people.
His newspaper, L´Ami du Peuple (The friend of the
people), as many others at the time, spread the political philosophers´ ideas about liberty and justice, previously only attainable by educated people, among the common people. That´s why he was so popular and his speeches attracted massive groups of people.
Explanation:
The Salon was an official french art exhibition sponsored by the French government, destined to the nobility´s social gatherings, but also where critiques of the Ancien Régime and revolutionary ideas were discussed.
A painting depicting the massive spread of liberal ideas would have been upsetting for the nobility in favor of the Ancien Régime, and a hopeful call to those interested in revolutionary ideas.
