Painting Part II NeoClassical Romantic Realist Impressionism PostImpressionism

Painting Part II Neo-Classical Romantic Realist Impressionism Post-Impressionism Modern

Neo-classicism Oath of the Horatii, Jacque-Louis David. 1785 smarthistory

The Challenge of Neo-classicism Classicism never really died From the Renaissance to Revolutionary period there were artists like Poussin who followed principles of balance, symmetry, and calm. The archeological excavations of Herculaneum and Pompeii during the 18 th century stimulated a great interest in antiquities, especially in France. The availability of images of classical Rome to artists led to a greater emphasis on accuracy.

Poussin Landscape with Orpheus and Eurydice, 1640’s. Oil on Canvas. Nature is theatre for mythological subjects. Conception precedes design. Elements arranged according to strict conventions.

Mural from 1 rst century, Pompeii. Casts from holes left in volcanic ash. Along with the scholarship and interest in these classical Roman models, the appointment of the strict Joseph-Marie Vien to head the French Academy led to emphasis on figure studies, anatomy, and perspective.

Aristocracy the French Academy Before the return of classicism a light eroticism, flattering the aristocracy Last days of the Aristocracy/prerevolution Madame de Pompadour as Venus Coy symbols of erotic pleasure A fluid and languid style The classical ideal has been transformed and women –clothed or unclothed-are more ornamental than real Venus Consoling Love, François Boucher (1703 -1770)

Johann Winckelmann 1717 -1768 Many consider him the father of the discipline of art history Influenced the rise of neoclassicism during the late 18 th century. His writings influenced not only a new science of archaeology and art history but Western painting, sculpture, literature and even philosophy. Artists can only be great if they imitate classical Greek and Roman works The simple and noble visual language of the classical period is the only language suitable for the elevation of human consciousness

Jacques-Louis David Pre-eminent painter of the Revolutionary period Neo-classicism Heightened and simplified drama Painter under Louis XVI and Napoleon

The Challenge of Neo-classicism David’s Oath of the Horatii creates a sensation Ironically commissioned by Louis XVI 8 years before the outbreak of the Revolution Becomes the symbol of the spirit that would topple the crown Replaces the idle aristocratic pastimes with seriousness, manliness, simplicity. Substitutes hard outline for flowing excesses of rococo painting.

Death of Socrates, David, 1787. Order, reason. Stoic ideal of clasical Greece. Stern patriotism.

La Maraichere, David, 1789 La maraichere - fishwoman, the maraicheres were particularly active during the early stages of the French Revolution 1789.

Conditions leading to Revolution in France Changing class structure Remnants of Feudalism Overtaxed small farmers and shop owners Overworked underclass Social Theories of Enlightenment

David was a sympathizer with the most radical participants in the Revolution Marat, a journalist was tricked by aristocrat, Charlotte Corday David uses the pictoral language of religious painting to impart spiritual martyrdom to Marat. Power of Art David Death of Marat, David. 1793

David bided his time and found favor with Napoleon. The language of Republican values easily becomes the language of imperial conquest. Napoleon was viewed as a “Romantic Hero” by many. Within the neo-classicist the seeds of romanticism. Napoleon Crossing the Saint Bernhard Pass, David, 1801 -1802.

The Coronation of Napoleon and Josephine, David, 1806.

Romanticism- late 1700 s-1800 s Romantic trends swept over Europe and America in all media Variety of romantic landscape traditions Political or Social Romantic themes

The Hay Wain, John Constable, 1821. Romantic Landscape - humble subject, nostalgia for his boyhood on the English countryside. Constable claimed he tried to “forget he ever looked upon a painting. ” Landscape presented in an idealized “realism. ”

Study of Sky and Trees, John Constable, 1821 – fleeting moment, changeable nature

Joseph Turner 1775 -1851 Like Constable, the Turner looked to nature and made many sketches in the spontaneous method of watercolor In his mature works he focused on the more turbulent aspects of nature Storms, disasters Placing man in a position of vulnerability before the forces of nature Turner’s watercolor sketch of Tintern Abbey

J. M. W. Turner The Slave Ship, 1840. Oil on Canvas. 35 in. X 4 ft. 1/4 in The sea becomes his main subject, as the source of nature’s indomitable power He exploits the romantic notion of the supremacy of sensation, intuition of the individual, his expanding and contracting forms parallel the contrasts in dynamics and mood of the romanticism of Beethoven.

German Romantic Painting Caspar David Friedrich 1774 -1840 Share basic features of Chinese Landscape tradition Man’s size reduced in vast natural landscape- poetic loneliness Figures at a distance from the viewer, contemplating the mysteries of time and the universe Friedrich’s Two Men Looking at the Moon, oil on panel, 13 ¾ in x 17 ¼ in.

Monk by the Sea, Caspar David Friedrich. 1808 -10.

Abbey in an Oak Grove, Caspar David Friedrich, 1809 -1810

Landscape Painting in France- the Barbizon School A group of French painters influenced by Dutch Landscape traditions Still partaking of the academic traditions of idyllic landscapes with Greek and Roman themes But in the style most associated with them, every day pastoral scenes with common people Took their canvases into the open air

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, Ville d’Avray, oil on canvas, 21 5/8 in. x 31 ½ in.

American Romantic Poetry and Transcendentalism American Romanticism, though influenced by the trends in Europe, developed in a very robust and natural way. America was a new nation, founded on individual liberty The vastness of unexplored territory and the untouched landscape presented a visual feast for painters enthralled by the “world spirit” American novelists explored the tough and rugged individual character, the darkness of the human psyche and the relationship of human beings to the turbulence of a wild and untamed nature

American Landscape Painters Hudson River School -painters of the Hudson River Valley in upstate New York Thomas Cole 1801 -1848 (British Born) Course of Empire smart history Brought to the reverence of Nature a nationalistic character Enthralled by the unique feature of the young America Unspoiled terrain, seemingly limitless possibilities for expansion Untamed wilderness becomes a visual metaphor for the American will and spirit

Thomas Cole, The Oxbow, view of the Connecticut River near Northampton, Massachusetts. Framing of scene with craggy tree, use of light on hills. 4 x 6 ½ ft.

Political or Social Romanticism Goya in Spain Gericault in France Propagandist Romanticism- Gros in France

The Execution of the Third of May, 1808. Francisco Goya, 1814 -15. Democratizes Romantic Hero.

Raft of the Medusa, Theodore Gericault, 1818. The event became an international scandal, in part because its cause was widely attributed to the incompetence of the French captain perceived to be acting under the authority of the recently restored monarchy. (Louis XVIII)smart history Elevates ordinary men to position of heroic combatants.

The 1798 Egyptian Expedition Under the Command of Bonaparte, Léon Cogniet, 1835. 10: 10 PBS documentary

Art as Propaganda Antoine-Jean Gros’ paintings of Napoleon’s campaigns became powerful propaganda Allegorical drama, casting Napoleon as Christ Use of romantic lighting, exoticism Dramatic development of foreground, middle ground and background vista smarthistory

French Realist Painting Courbet Manet

Gustav Courbet (France) 1819 -77 Courbet DW smart history Painter most associated with Realism Rejected by the Academy, associated with socialists out of favor with the by 2 nd Empire

The Stone-Breakers (1849) Gustave Courbet

Manet is a transitional painter between the Realists and Impressionists. Luncheon on the Grass, 1863. smarthistory

Concert in the Open Air, Titian (with Giorgione), oil on canvas, 1511.

Manet, bar at the Folies- Bergère, 1882. Ennui of the working poor. Manet sought a dispassionate art – distance of subject from artist.

Olympia, Manet. 1863. smart history