Role of cafés in the life and creative work of the 19th century artists in France

The paper studies the role of the cafe as a specific social institution in the French culture and arts of the 19th century. In discussing the psychological and historical aspects of the cafe atmosphere and its influence on the appearance of revolutionary movements and new styles, historical data and available paintings have been used. In the psychological sense, cafes had a cathartic function and represented a specific type of protected locations providing support to artists in their expressing new and original ideas. The cafe was an alternative location for the restrictive and rigid Ecole des Beaux-Arts, which did not accept any deviation from the classical principles of painting. The cafe is presented in the light of various characters of individual artists and also in the light of their artworks. In addition to the positive social role of the cafe, the paper also deals with its negative influences such as alcoholism and absmthism, and bases this discussion on the analysis of paintings and several individual artist careers. Particular attention has been paid to the connection between the changes in Van Gogh's style of painting and the dynamics of his psychological crises. A short presentation is given of the results of an empirical study on the change in Van Gogh's painting techniques from five distinctive periods, based on the Martindale's scales of arousal potential and primordial content. Finally, the topic of the cafe is discussed in the light of psychoanalytic theories of art as sublimation, catharsis and regression in the service of the ego.