Baroque (1600-1750)
“irregular, contorted, grotesque”
- Generally agreed the new style was born
in Rome during the final yeas of the 16 th
century
- What remains under dispute: whether the
Baroque is the final phase of the
Renaissance, or an era distinct from both
Renaissance and modern
Zeitgeist- spirit/ “feels” of the time
Baroque-Barroco-uneven/ misshaped peal
*bizarre art, ornamented,
Rise of the Dutch Republic – 1581-1795,
revolted against King Philip II of Spain at that
time because of high taxes, persecution of
Protestants, and the efforts of Phillip to modernize
the devolved-medieval government structure of
the provinces
Decline of Spain – 7 provinces of Netherlands
rebelled against the Spanish rule
Thirty Years’ War – 1618-1648 – one of the
most apocalyptic conflicts Europe has ever seen –
resulted from an ongoing struggle between the
Catholics and the Protestants adding also the
political issues. Came to an end in 1648 in the
part of Europe we now call as Germany.
Holland and England became rich
RENE DESCARTES
-new theory of knowledge
“I think therefore I am” – Cogito ergo sum – in
a book containing meditations in an attempt to
discover what is real by first doubting absolutely
everything and start from scratch. Starts from the
bottom and works his way up into believing in the
existence of worldly things
- The fact that he can think assures him of his
own existence, and a deceiving god cannot
negate that
FRANCIS BACON
- Advocate and practitioner of Scientific
method, creator of
empiricism/experimentation/observation
- Speculative thinking
Recovery of the papacy
- Counter reformation has taken full effect.
Some important territories had been
recaptured for the old faith
- The princes of the Church who supported
the growth of Baroque art were known for
worldly splendor rather than piety
- Instead of painting everyday scenes as
how the Protestant artists would to portray
Biblical scenes, Catholic artists would
graphically portray the martyrdom of saints,
and painted Virgin Mary and Jesus as
idealized humans
- Paintings glorified catholic traditions,
idealized saints and sacraments
Interconnectedness of other systems:
1. The newly fortified catholic faith
2. The absolutist state – unrestricted power
of the monarchy or autocracy; climax in
Louis the XIV’s reign in 17th century
3. The new role of science
The Arts
1. Not through strict rationalization
2. More of emotions, feelings approach
3. Religious emotionalism
4. Dynamic energy
5. Exuberant decorative richness
6. Nexus of various stylistic impulses
BERNINI (sculptures)
a. David
- technical virtuosity
- Baroque exuberance, patronage of the pope,
expressive energy
- about to release the slingshot
- antithetical to Michealangelo’s personality and
art: family man, fast worker, systematic
- much more dynamic, climactic in the midst of
action
- motion and emotion, movement and
psychological intensity – breaking new grounds
- implied presence of Goliath
b. ST. THERESA OF AVILA
- ”Ecstacy of St. Therese” – pose, facial
expressions
- Angel pierced the heart of St. Therese – saw
visions of God
- exploiting drama – through background,
natural light, grand setting
- Baroque sculpture: active relationship with
space it inhabits
- canopy in St. Peter’s; Sta. Maria della Vittoria
c. APOLLO AND DAPHNE 1622-25
- humane, Daphne resists advances of Apollo so
wished to become a tree instead
- commissioned by Cardinal Borghese
Paintings
CARAVAGGIO – 1601 “Caravaggioesque”,
Caravaggism
-painter, premiere Italian painter in Baroque
a. SUPPER AT EMMAUS
- more, big, gestures; emphatic and full of
drama
- resurrected but incognito Jesus reveals himself
to the 2 disciples only to soon vanish from their
sight
- Jesus raised from the dead
- shadows are heightened, exaggerated, no
more middle tones
- boldly illuminated figures against dark,
mysterious backgrounds
- paintings have “lay Christianity”
b. DOUBTING THOMAS
- Thomas, poking his finger to the wound of
Christ
- dark background, extreme chiaroscuro –
strong contrasts between light and dark;
contrasts of light to achieve a sense of volume
in modeling 3-dimensional objects such as the
human body
Caravaggio – Northerner birthplace near Milan
c. CALLING OF ST. MATTHEW
- Depicting moment in which Jesus inspires
Matthew to follow him
- “naturalism” – sacred subject depicted in
terms of contemporary low life
- “Come Follow Me” – strong impact – blinding
spotlight, forceful arm, dramatic
- Different interpretations as to who is Matthew
in the painting – bearded man “Me?” or “Him?”
- Halo on Jesus – commanding gesture – maybe
borrowed from Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam
d.1. CONVERSION of ST. PAUL
- Saul is struck blind by a brilliant light on his
way to Damascus to annihilate the Christian
community
- Naturalism replaced symbolism; no idealism
- St. Ignatius’ spiritual exercises on senses
rather than intellect
- Composition with its jagged shapes and
irrational light – sense of crisis and dislocation
in which Christ disrupts the mundane world
d.2. CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL ON THE WAY
TO DAMASCUS
- “I am Jesus whom you persecute. Arise and go
into the city”
e. DAVID 1599
- dark, few light, expressions
- Light on young David’s leg, shoulders, arm
and flank, on the head itself and everything
else is dark
- Intensely personal and private – no triumph,
no armies, no victory
f. DEPOSITION OF CHRIST
*Raphael – with background, natural world for
distraction
*Caravaggio – more dynamic – CROPPING,
blackout, spotlight, more exaggerated gestures
- What makes this a counter-reformation
painting?
- Bloodless Christ unlike spanish post-
crucifixion painting with gore, not feeling
pain even if a finger is directed to the
wound of Christ, his body is a muscled
thick-limbed laborer compared to the
bony-thin depiction
- Makes this different – mary
depicted as an old woman rather than as a
young woman which was usually the norm
- Raised arms – mary of cleophas
- Person in painting – more direct to audience
Artemisia GENTILESCHI
- follower of Caravaggio
- Worked most in Naples
- Woman painter – sued teacher who raped her
- Baroque – erotic and violent scenes
- Extracting revenge
a. JUDITH SLAYING HOLOFERNES 1611-12
- Partly realistic because it was very
personal to Artemisia
- Exploit chiaroscuro and an unidealized
vision of common humanity – violent effect
- Homicidal heroine, women playing a
dominant role
- Black background, illuminated humans
- 2nd – getting away with murder
ZURBARAN – Spanish, praying monk,
Caravaggio’s follower
- Plain and simple, quiet intensity of
devotional pictures
- Counter-Reformation mysticism
- Dramatic lighting
ST. SERAPION – Caravaggesque style
- 1628 oil on canvas
- Calm depiction of a violent death
- Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote
De La Tour – France
- Also a Caravaggisti
ST. JOSEPH
- Dark, dramatic, seated
- Candle – source of light
- Accentuating impact of viewer
- Candle and mirror – increases illumination
THE PENITENT MAGDALENE
- Skull – symbol of mortality
- Just before here complete conversion
ANNIBALE CARRACCI
- less radical than Caravaggio
- anti-Mannerist style since 1580s
 Ceiling fresco in the gallery of the Farnese
Palace – famous but thought second only to
those of Michelangelo
- Rich, intricate design of narrative scenes;
surrounded by painted architecture, simulated
sculpture and nude youths
- Carefully foreshortened and illuminated from
below – exuberance
- Reformer rather than a revolutionary
- At best, succeeded in fusing diverse elements
such as revival of the classics and returning to
nature
GUERCINO
Aurora
- Architectural perspective and pictorial
illusionism
- One limitless space; figures sweep past as
if propelled by winds
DA CORTONA 1633-39
Glorification of the Reign of Urban VIII
- Most overpowering of all these ceiling
frescoes is in the great hall of the
Barberini Palace in Roma
- Simulating architecture and sculpture, but
beyond it we see the unbounded space of
the sky
- Clusters of figures perched in clouds or
soaring freely, swirl above as well as
below this framework
- Dual illusion: figures hovering inside the
hall; while others recede into a light-filled,
infinite distance
Dynamism literally sweeps us off our feet –
Baroque style reaches its resounding climax.
BAROQUE IN FLANDERS, NETHERLAND
The Scream- Edvard Munch, 1895
- most expensive painting sold ever, 2012:
$119.9 million
- One of the greatest expressionist paintings
ever
- Highest priced work of art and costliest of all
pastel drawings
- An expression of personal suffering
- His loved ones passed away one after the
other
No. 5- Jackson Pollock, 1948
 Abstract Expressionist, drip painting
 Sold to David Geffen in 2006 for $140million
co-founder of Dreamworks SKG
 “Jack the Dripper”, painting on the floor, used
the force of his whole body to paint, nearer
and more part of the painting
The Massacre of the Innocents - $76.7 M
- The new most expensive painting from
Baroque, sold in 2002
- Most expensive work by an old master
- From the bible, one of the most savage
events, massacre of all newborn boys ordered
by Herod to prevent the emergence of a
Messiah
- Referred to as one of the best history painters
of the baroque period
- Movement, muscle, flesh, above all, emotion
- Diagonals, color contrasts, relationships
between figures
PETER PAUL RUBENS
- From Antwerp, Flemish realist, very detailed
- Studied the works of Italian masters diligently
- United disparate influences:
 Michelangelo’s muscular and twisting
bodies, also the different color and
lighting from him
 Caravaggio lighting
- His robust sensuality and fertile imagination
creates his strong individual character
- Emphasized movement, colour and
sensuality
a. SAMSON AND DELILAH 1609-10
- Climactic moment of cutting of hair – his
strength coming from his hair; having fallen
asleep on Delilah’s lap, a servant cuts his
hair, then after, the weakened Samson is
arrested by Philistine soldiers
- Rubenesque – feminine, vuluptuous
- Ideal of full-breasted, broad-waisted,
more womanly, dimpling and puckered
flesh of female nude
- Smoothness and warmth of skin
- Old woman at the back is not really part
of the biblical scene – symbolism
woman of the past and Delilah’s future
- Crossed hands of the cutter – sign of
deceit
- Commissioned by an alderman for his
townhouse
b. JUDGMENT OF PARIS (1639)
- Everything bustling with energy, Paris as
trusting
- Idealized feminine beauty, many versions
- RUBENS was a diplomat, he was knighted,
knows different languages, establishes
peace as he is an adviser and emissary
c. RAPE OF THE DAUGHTERS OF
LEOCIPPUS, 1617
- Enhanced swirling impression of dynamic
movement
- Diamond of intersecting diagonals,
twisting
 - Unerotic, unmystical religious sensibility
- Phoebe and Hileira
d. ARRIVAL OF MARIE DE MEDICI, 1621-25
 One of the 24 canvases that comprise the
Medici cycle
 9th –The Embarkation at Marseilles, seems
like a very triumphant moment when it
doesn’t have to be depicted that way
 Loosely depicts the life of Marie de Medici
 -symbolism of heaven and earth
 History and allegory altogether
 Fleur de lys – symbol of the royal family of
France
 Below the gangplank: 3 sea nymphs, along
with gods of the sea
 Drama of the poses, contrast with the
steepliness of the queen above
 Energy and motion, everything at the
bottom of this canvass is in motion
 Granddaughter of the holy roman emperor
 Married Henry the IV
 In 1610, before the King was assassinated,
she took the throne as Queen of France
 Became regent since her son Louis the XIII
was still young, and even if he was already
of age. She wouldn’t let him ascend to the
throne. And when he was finally old enough
and able to have the authority to say that it
was his turn already, he banished her from
France and he wouldn’t allow her to come
back for years. Marie was very ambitious,
very powerful
BAROQUE MUSIC
- full development of instrumental music was
achieved in the Baroque period wherein it can
stand alone, unlike during the renaissance
period
- Universal characteristics of Baroque Music
- 1. Basso continuo – typically consists of a
harpsichord and a cello provides the rhythmic
and harmonic foundations of an ensemble.
Usually written on the bass line with numbers to
determine or designate the harmony then
performers decide to fill out this figured bass
- 2. Ornamentation – embellishment of a musical
line with devices such as trills, mordants and
grace notes. Rarely written out and never even
indicated but simply left to the taste of the
performer
Handel
- British born, famous for his opera,
oratorios
- Play Hallelujah and other Messiah music
- The rise of the virtuoso style
- Bach and Handel were great virtuosi on
organ and harpsichord, Corelli on the
violin
- Audiences loved to applaud virtuosity and
improvisation when performers were
expected to fill out the score, offering their
own extemporaneous creation
- Play lady gaga fugue
REMBRANDT VAN RIJN
- Caravaggisnic
- Developed graphic processes, engraving,
etching, drypoint corrections on copperplate
- Started with smoothly painted Biblical
scenes with spiralling composition (RUBENS)
and chiaroscuro (CARAVAGGIO)
- Made a lot of self-portraits; with wife
looking out to the audience
- a man who kept on representing himself
through his artworks
a. Portrait of Jan Six, 1654
 One of the best portraits of the Dutch
Golden Era
 Estimated as $150 million according to art
dealer Otto Naumann
 From a well-off family, playwright, poet, also
studied law
 Friends with Rembrandt, thus the more
casual posture
b. SAMSON BEING BLINDED
“lay Christian” – Old Testament
- Sparse details on background, lighting
- Oriental splendor and violence
- Flare, flamboyance, energy – full of
emotion, full of character
- Rags-riches-rags – internal and extrenal
problems; compassion for the poor
c. MAN WITH A GOLDEN HELMET
- Like Jan van Eyck’s Man in a Red Turban –
self-portrait
- Successful but sad – moral tale
- Questioning the standard of success that
doesn’t lead to happiness
d. RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL SON, 1666
- Focus on relationship among figures –
mysterious, supernatural light
- Simple, but deeply felt – emotion
- Interprets mercy with an extraordinary
solemnity that goes beyond all works of
Baroque art in the evocation of religious
mood and human sympathy
- Like his final word, aged artist
- Expressive lighting + simple setting = full
impact of event
- Light against enormous dark surface
- Repentant sinner leaning against his
father’s chest and old father bending over
his son
e. THE NIGHT WATCH, 1642
Myth KLM Airlines in 1967: “See Night Watch.
Rembrandt’s spectacular failure that led to his
bankruptcy” – in truth, painting was not poorly
received, no word in dispraise of it, never
hidden in some obscure location
- incidentally, both “night” and “watch” are
wrong – guards, by the time Rembrandt
painted them, were no longer necessary to
guard the ramparts of Amsterdam or go out
on watches by day or night
- Meetings have been diverted chiefly as
social or sporting activities
- Insignificant incident as a grand historical
spectacle on a huge scale – military
company
- Canvas had become so darkened by dirt
and layers of varnish that it was difficult to
tell if illumination was provided by
Rembrandt from sun or moon
- Suffered from the ministrations of
restorers – “Rembrandt brown” – thus
impression of a monotonous colorist
- Not until WWII was the painting fully
restored
- Contrasts of light and shade, brilliant and
drab color
- Variety of poses, gestures, expressions
- Contained not only 18 guardsmen (in real
life) but also 16 other figures – bark of the
dog, rumble of the drums, cries of children
One reason of his decline was definitely
the change of Dutch taste; too much
chiaroscuro
f. BATHSHEBA
- David invites Bathsheba, very meaty
underneath
- Been regarded as an icon for breast
cancer in the 1980s – 2 Australian surgeons
interpreted the blue mark on her breast as
breast cancer, wrote an article
- Then researchers from MIRA institute
demonstrated that it is highly unlikely that it
was really caused by the disease through
computer simulations – not so useful, man
she died centuries ago
- In practice, breast cancer tumours are
located much deeper, and deeper tumors
don’t show any color
- Model is very probable to be Rembrandt’s
lover
- Ignored the standard treatment of
the scene – King David gazing; outdoor
setting – in this case, we the viewers,
are the voyeurs
- Naked figure of no perfection
VERMEER
hierarchy of subjects in painting
 HISTORY – religion in this case
 PORTRAIT
 LANDSCAPE
 STILL LIFE
a. THE ARTIST AND HIS STUDIO, 1640
- Its subject has no subject; the ties of silence
unite these two people; an interplay of
space and light both separates and unites
them
- Artist presented from the back
- Suit is actually the fashion from 150 years
before this present: why? Strange
anachronism.
- Woman – leaves on her head, carrying a
book and trumpet – what does she
represent? – neither looks at the book, the
trumpet, painter, but the still life in front of
them
- Grail geometry, symbolic, studio, paint Clio –
muse of history
- Trumpet = fame
- Conspicuous elements:
- Chair – inviting viewer to the painting
- Chandelier – not lighted – Netherlands,
predominantly Protestant – Vermeer was a
Catholic
- Map at the back
- Subject of the painting: History
- Social status of the artist – checkered tiles
means rich
- “GENRE SCENES” – Vermeer’s hardly has
any narrative
- Genre meaning “type” or “kind”
- Scenes that show people at work, play or
rest
- Intention of not who people are, but what
they are doing
b. WOMAN HOLDING A BALANCE, 1664
- Woman steadies her scales before
weighing her gold and pearls
- Framed painting of the Last Judgment
silhouettes her serene figure just as Christ
weighs souls, so as the woman tests a
balance
- Mirror in front of her reflects a self-
knowledge
Subtle meaning is reinforced by Vermeer’s
exquisite refinement of composition and
lighting
RULE OF THIRDS
 - Our eyes naturally gravitate to
intersection points when the image is split
into thirds
- 2 imaginary vertical and 2 horizontal lines
- Important compositional elements are
placed where the lines intersect, on or
near the imaginary lines
- Landscapes
- If the focus is on land, the horizon should
be on the upper third row
- If on the horizon, land should be on the
lower third
- Rather than put the horizon in the center
so the photos look better
- Eyes are lined up with the upper horizontal
line, on the intersecting lines
c. A LADY WRITING, 1665
Vermeer was a painter of light
Used camera obscure or “darkened chamber” –
ancestor of modern photographic camera –
employing an adjustable lens
- Duplicates the selective focus of the eye
- Precise highlights glisten from the writing
box, pearl earrings, satin hair ribbons, brass
from chair – all equally in middle distance
- Nearby table cloth is purposely blurred,
then painting at the back is hazy
D. ALLEGORY OF FAITH, 1671-74
- She professes her faith, scriptures, chalice,
crucifix
- Painting within a painting
- Hanging spidery glass ball – one desperately
seeks Vermeer’s reflection, as one would on
Van Eyck’s Arnolfini
DUTCH
- Freedom of speculation
- Struggle for religious and civic liberty
- Landscape and still-life
- Portraits, landscape, still-life, or genre
MEINDERT HOBBEMA
THE AVENUE AT MIDDLEHARNIS – landscape
- Trees – classic example of perspective and
vanishing point
- Light tonality, colorful palette, smooth
technique
Landscape in real life – hunger games
WILLEM KALF
STILL LIFE WITH DRINKING HORN, 1653
- Pronkstilleven – ostentatious still life –
display of luxurious possessions that
reflected the wealthy lifestyle of Holland
- Venetian glass, Chinese porcelain, Turkish
garments
- Also carries symbolic significance
- Map o holland
DUTCH
- Secular painting flourished under bankers,
merchants
- General striving to adorn their houses
- Little demand for devotional altarpieces or
grandiose architecture
STEENWYCK
ALLEGORY OF THE VANITIES OF HUMAN
LIFE, 1640
- ‘Vanitas’ painting – religious work in the guise
of still life – cautions viewer to be careful of
wealth and pleasures of life as this can be
an obstacle to the path of salvation
- Emphasis on subordination and prominence
- Skull – universal symbol of death
- Lamp – indicates passage of time; mortality
- Idea of worthlessness
- Chronometer or pocket watch – idea of time
- Shell – luxury – high social status in
Netherlands
- Symbol – context of being shallow or empty –
shiny on the outside, hollow on the inside
- Ecclesiastes – the more you
increase knowledge, the more you increase
sorrow
JAN VAN GOYEN
- Landscape Artist
- Landscapes are painted for a wide public,
sold on open market and bought
FORT ON A RIVER, 1650
- Naturalistc, local scenery
- Symbolic – nationhood – shared set of
ideas binding people together,
contemporary scenes
- 2/3 of canvas - sky
JACOB VAN RUISDAEL
Windmill at Wijk, 1670
- Dramatic, heroic windmill scene
- Greatest Dutch landscape painter
FRANS HALS (HOLLAND)
- Dutch Golden age painter, loose brushwork,
- Paintings are vivid and vibrant
- Portraits and portrait-like figures form
contemporary life
- Influenced by Rubens
- Studies of expression and character
- Unrestricted by his sitters, free to work out
his INDIVIDUAL MANNER – very free
brushwork
a. THE MERRY DRINKER
- Instantaneous life, spontaneity of
brushwork; painter’s individuality and
novelty
- Comes across as if a person you meet at a
bar
- Anticipates 19th century Impressionism
 - Baroque: rendering of instantaneous
emotion and movement
- Most frequently he shows the instant when
joy of life is at its highest
b. LAUGHING CAVALIER
“one of the most brilliant of all baroque
portraits”
- Involved gorgeous, expensive silk costume
- Turning pose and low viewpoint allow
emphasis on lower sleeve and lace cuff
- In general, commissioned portraits such as
this rarely showed individuals smiling until
late 18th cent, though smiling is often seen
in genre paintings
“A Cavalier” only in 1888 was it given the title
laughing cavalier
 The Gypsy Girl, Jonky Rap and his
Sweetheart, Boy With A Lute
BAROQUE IN SPAIN
DIEGO VELASQUEZ (1599-1660)
 Was a court official – Philip IV
 European fame is of recent origin as well,
dating from first quarter of 19th cent
 “sense of moderness of impression, direct
contact with nature, vital force” – Sir David
Wilkie
 Although acquainted with all Italian
schools, strong enough to witthstand every
external influence and to work out for himself
his own principles of art
 Great influence any other late in time
 “I would rather be the painter of common
things rather than second in higher art”
 Noblest and most commanding man of his
time in his country
 Great skill in merging color, light, space,
rhythm of line, and mass in such a way they
all have equal value
Putting dignity on the lower class: a. THE
WATER CARRIER OF SEVILLE
b. PORTRAIT Of POPE INNOCENT X
- Seated in cathedra, red background,
- Center of attention – face
- Best portrait of portraits
- Style of Titian, single space
- royalty, courtliness of the most rigid
character was his task to portray, not
individual personality
- however, this portrait leads on to suspect
that there might have been more
interpretation had the painter been free to
express it
- As court painter, he spent large of his life
recording in his cool, detached way
- Objective appearance of the rigidly
conventional household with little
interpretation but with the keenest eye for
selecting what was important for pictorial
expression.
c. LAS MENINAS (MAIDS OF HONOR) –
1656
- Portrait of Infanta Margarita, daughter of
King Philip IV
- Margarita dropped in to see Velasquez at
work, stops right next to him – seemed
perplexed – portrayed by Velasquez
- Paradox/peculiar strangeness: Infanta
definitely not posing for her portrait
- King and Queen reflected in the back wall
mirror – therefore we assume that Velasquez
is painting the portrait of the royal couple
standing behind his easel – but looking
deeper, Margarita is the center of attention
and focus of Las Meninas
- greatest work
- The artist as an intellectual, not a
craftsman
“The Theology of Painting”
- Extending space, expansive
- High ceiling, glances of characters
- Makes use of vanishing point
- MULTIPLICITY OF SUBJECT
- Artist dressed as court official – elevation
of his social status
- In the studio, sleepy dog
- Venetian richness in colors
- Practice of using pigment in short or long,
thin or thick, hasty and spontaneous but
actually most skillfully calculated strokes –
Velasquez as a forerunner of the modern
practice or direct painting
LAS MENINAS by PICASSO
- 1957, series of 58 paintings performing a
comprehensive analysis, reinterpreting
and recreating several times Las Meninas
by
Diego Velasquez – took 4 months to complete
- Using avant-garde style he created –
Cubism – entirely new message by
copying an old painting in a new style
- Technique releases any hold on
conventional idea of beauty and focuses
instead on a geometric approach to form
and color
- Attempt to recreate an object in the way
that a human brain, not the human eye
does
Suite is fully preserved in Barcelona
 BARTOLOME MURILLO – painter of sweetness
and light
a. BOY WITH A DOG
- Demure rosy-cheeked Virgins – dismissed
as sentimental, weak and inconsequential
unlike his far darker, more serious
contemporaries – Zurburan and Velasquez
- His paintings made them perfectly suited
for Counter-Reformation tastes
- By 1650s, he abandoned his early
Caravaggesque chiaroscuro and the severity
of Zurburan in favor of unadultered
sentimentality
- Trip to Madrid (he’s from Seville) – saw
paintings of Rubens, Italian Renaissance
artists – taught him to use warmer tones,
richer colors, thicker brushstrokes and
brilliant highlights
BAROQUE in ENGLAND
ENGLISH BAROQUE
- Architecture
- Insular (separate from other cultures) form
of “Late Gothic” – absorbed the stylistic
vocabulary of the Italian Renaissance but as
late as 1600, English buildings still retained
a “Perpendicular syntax”
ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL
- Sir Christopher Wren
- Classicism is seen – the second-story
windows; the dome – looks like Bramante’s
Tempieto
- Up-to-date Baroque design reflecting a
thorough acquaintance with contemporary
architecture in Italy and France
- Wren came close to being a Baroque
counterpart of the Renaissance artist-scientist
- Studied anatomy, physics,
mathematics, astronomy, highly esteemed by
Sir Isaac Newton
- Because of the great London fire of
1666 that destroyed the Gothic cathedral of
St. Paul and many lesser churches, he was
named the royal commission for rebuilding
the city
- Middle path between classical
puritanism and Baroque exuberance
Development of 17th cent architecture follows
the French pattern: toward 1700, the High
Baroque wins out over a classicistic tradition
yet England never accepted the subsequent
Rococo
First School of English painting since the Middle
Ages that had more than local importance
WILLIAM HOGARTH
- Entertains us that we enjoy his sermon
without being overwhelmed by its message
- Probably the first artist in history to become a
social critic in his own right
Scene 3 of The Rake’s Progress, 1734
- Modern moral subjects
- Picture that comes from a set
- A young wanstrel is overindulging in wine
and women
- Scene is full of visual clues yet however
literal-minded, the picture has great appeal
THOMAS GAINSBOROUGH – 1748-1750
ROBERT ANDREWS AND HIS WIFE
- Portraiture remained the only constant
source of income for English painters
- Began painting landscapes, but ended as
the favorite portraitist of British high society
- Unpretentiously at home in their setting
- Landscape, derived from Ruisdael, has a
sunlit, hospitable air never achieved by
Dutch masters
BAROQUE IN FRANCE
Culturally France was the most powerful nation
as the center of the art world shifted from Rome
to Paris and Versailles
Referred to their art not as Baroque but as
“classic” or in the style of Louis XIV
High Renaissance of Italy and classical antiquity
Classic – simple, clarity, balance, restraint
- Nourished by French humanism
Hyacinthe Rigaud, Louis XIV, King of
France and Navarre, 1701
THE SUN KING, 1661-1715
- Centralized the government around his own
person and used art and architecture in the
service of the monarchy
- Absolute power – no check on what they could
and could not do
- No parliament that would have balance the
power of the king (as there was in England)
- King also ruled by divine right – the power to
rule came from God
- Established the Royal Academy of Fine Arts – to
control matters of art and artistic education
by imposing a classicizing style and other
regulations – new opportunities for artists
and established a canon of work
- Here, king is portrayed in majesty and
authority; as well as our own significance in
his presence
- The ermine and the velvets and embroidered
silk are so sumptuous that the eye focuses
 on them more than on the face of the Sun
King
VERSAILLES
- King’s official residence in 1682
- 14 miles southwest of Paris and contains 700
rooms
- Louis Le Vau – architect – classical authority,
logical clarity, imposing splendor
- Galerie des Glaces or Hall of Mirrors –
room with 17 mirrors facing the windows
that look out onto fabulous gardens
- Higher French aristocrats are invited to live
here and wait upon him
- Not just a place to live – became the symbol of
the French monarchy itself therefore all the
décor had to speak of the power and
accomplishments of the king
- Every aspect of the king’s life was thoroughly
ritualized – incredible majesty of the king
NICOLAS POUSSIN (1594-1665)
- Greatest French painter of the century –
like many European artists, was drawn to
Rome
- Inspired by Titian, Venetian qualities
- Highest aim of painting is to represent noble
and serious human actions
- In logical, orderly way – general and typical
- Defined himself against the prevailing Baroque
tastes of his adopted city and steadfastly
followed his own artistic path
- Sensitivity to the nuances of gesture, design,
color and handling – he varied according to
the theme at hand
a. RAPE OF THE SABINE WOMEN 1634-35
and 1637-38 (2Versions)
- Was able to display to the full his unsurpassed
antiquarian knowledge, together with his
mastery of complicated relations of figures
in dramatic encounter
- Depicts Romulus at the left giving the signal
for abduction
- Second architectural setting is more developed
Had only one papal commission – The
Martyrdom of Saint Erasmus – coolly
received and was followed by the loss of a
commission
- Realized that he would not sought out to
decorate the churches and palaces of
Counter-Reformation – not his strength
- Cassiano – patron
- Gradually developed an audience for the
paintings of relatively modest size –
rationally ordered, subdued, often
exquisitely poetic works
- Spent most of his time in Rome – stood
apart from the popular tendency toward
the decorative in French art of his time
- Goal was clarity of expression achieved by
disegno or nobility of design in preference
to color
b. Ideal landscape: The Four Seasons:
Summer or Boaz discovering Ruth
gleaning corn in his field from the Book of
Ruth
- Set of four oil paintings 1660-1664
- Each painting conveying the different seasons
and times of the day
- Philosophical reflection on order in the natural
world – executed when he was in failing
health suffering from tremor in his hands
- Iconography evokes not only the Christian
themes of death and resurrection but also
the pagan imagery of classical antiquity
- Depicting the grandeur of nature: “benign in
Spring, rich in Summer, sombre yet fruitful
in Autumn, cruel in Winter”
- Chose to symbolize each season by a specific
episode from the Old Testament
SPRING: THE EARTHLY PARADISE
AUTUMN: THE SPIES WITH THE GRAPES OF
THE PROMISED LAND
WINTER: THE FLOOD
LOUVRE MUSEUM
- In Louis XIV reign, this became the place
to display the royal collection
- During the French Revolution, decree was
made for the Louvre to be a museum to
display the nation’s masterpieces – and
has expanded to display world’s greatest
artworks
- Louvre Palace and the Pyramid which was
completed in 1989
LE NAIN
- 3 brothers that it was difficult to
distinguish their paintings from each other
and so they commonly referred to as a
single entity
- Usually depicted scenes of peasant life –
Louis, who had been usually credited, may
have visited Italy
- Subjects are never grotesque or seem
ridiculed
ANTOINE COYSEVOX
- Rose to become one of the greatest
sculptors, leading portrait sculptor
- Best known for his extensive work for the
gardens and chateau of Versailles
 - Bust of Charles Le Brun – interior designer
and master of entertainments
- Founded the academie of France in
Rome
- Bust is created in an intimate,
informal portrait, the head animated and
alert
- Only the diamond-encrusted
miniature of Louis XIV tucked in his cloak
indicates Le Brun’s status
In the 1800
Poussinistes – conservatives (Rape of the
Sabine Women)
- drawing appealed to mind over color
- proclaimed the primacy of drawing and
draughtsmanship in painting
- classical art from Greek and Roman
antiquities up through the Renaissance
Rubenistes (Massacre of the Innocents)
- argued that color should rule than drawing
- adored vibrant colors and aggressive
brushstrokes of the more recent Baroque
artists