Why did Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres stop exhibiting at the Salon after 1834?

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres stopped exhibiting at the Salon after 1834 due to the intense and polarized critical reception of his painting Martyrdom of Saint-Symphorien.1

By 1834, Ingres faced accusations of artistic imperialism—the perception that he was attempting to impose his personal style on the entire French school of painting. When he debuted Martyrdom of Saint-Symphorien, which had been highly anticipated as a definitive masterpiece, the work was met with violent attacks from critics on the political and cultural left, while being fiercely defended by his allies on the right. Deeply wounded by the lack of universal approval and being a notoriously hypersensitive individual, Ingres announced that he would never again exhibit at the Salon. Following this decision, he sought and accepted the position of director of the Acadèmie de France in Rome and departed for Italy in December 1834.1