Factsheet 5.1 - Art History

ART APPRECIATION: Art History
TOPIC: RENAISSANCE AND MANNERISM, BAROQUE AND ROCOCO,

NEO-CLASSICISM, ROMANTIC AND REALISM, IMPRESSIONISM, POST-
IMPRESSIONISM, NEO- IMPRESSIONISM, SYMBOLISM AND ART
NOUVEAU, CUBISM AND FUTURISM.
RENAISSANCE
The economic progress in the late Medieval Period, which was brought about
by increased trade and commerce, resulted in the growth of cities and provided
the backdrop for the remarkable period that is known as the Renaissance.
Renaissance, a word borrowed from the French language, literally means

“rebirth,”
First, there was a revival of classical learning in the study of the ancient Greek
and Roman texts. The influx of scholars from Constantinople, besieged in 1453,
brought into Italy the treasures of classical civilization. This stirred enthusiasm
for the philosophy and artistic values of the ancients The ideals of classicism-
balance, harmony, proportion, and intellectual order became the artistic
standards of the period.
Finally, this expansion into all directions, the discovery of more trade routes,
and the development of trade and commerce changed the structure of society.
There was a transition from the feudal order of the medieval period-lord, knight,
and vassal classes- to a mercantile capitalist society based on the new money
economy which came with the rise of the middle class, the bourgeoisie, in
combination with the large aristocratic houses, huge banking enterprises to
finance commerce and trade were launched in Italy by the Medicis and in
Germany by rich merchants. They became the new art patrons, setting the
marks of their taste on the arts of the period.
THE RENAISSANCE IDEAL OF MAN
What, then, was the Renaissance ideal of man? As the classical Greeks
believed in the harmonious development of the person a sound mind, through
the study of philosophy and the arts, and a healthy body, through the practice
of athletics-the Renaissance held up the ideal of the well- rounded man
GEC Factsheets # 5.1| ROSE ANN ABLETES BSED 1-D

knowledgeable in a number of fields-philosophy, science, art, including painting

and music-and applying his knowledge to productive and creative activity.
THE GREAT MEN IN RENAISSANCE
MICHAELANGELO LEONARDO DA VINCI
Was a great painter, sculptor, architect, and poet. Was a painter,

architect, scientist, and
mathematician.
• They developed their potentialities fully and showed how much a man
can comprehend in his lifetime.
• Their lives were enriched and refined by artistic and intellectual values,
and they shunned overspecialization in a particular field which would
lead to intellectual imbalance.
PAINTING AND SCUPLTURE

In the visual arts, portable easel paintings became popular due to wider
patronage. Although many subjects remained religious, figures from classical
mythology made. their appearance. Apollos and Venuses, nymphs and satyrs
provided a welcome excuse to reveal the beauty of the human physique.

An important characteristic of the period was the spirit of scientific inquiry and
investigation. This new and vital approach to the material world led to
empiricism, which laid emphasis on the evidence of the senses. The scientific
spirit manifested itself not only in the new discoveries, but in the arts as well.
The artists, influenced by the interest in science, strove for a more naturalistic
portrayal of man and developed new techniques such as the use of modeling
and shading for a three-dimensional effect. The modeling of the human figure
countered the linear tradition of Byzantine and medieval art.
Because of the new interest in scientific investigation, artists began to take
closer scrutiny of the human figure. They became concerned not merely with
the superficial appearance but with what lay beneath-the muscles, the sinews,
and the veins, and how these coordinated in movement. This interest in
anatomy, bone structure, and musculature gave portrayals of man a significant
dynamism.
MONA LISA

The painting Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci is one of the most famous and
recognized paintings in history. Unarguably it is the most discussed painting
because of the enigmatic smile. There have been many discussions about the
smile of Mona Lisa, whether she is smiling or not. The major feature of this
painting is that Da Vinci has painted her eyes in such a way that even when
you change the angle of the view, the eyes of Mona Lisa seems to always follow
you. The painting is done in oil on wood and is presently under the ownership
of the Government of France. Mona Lisa is exhibited in Louvre, Paris and it
belongs to the public, which means that it cannot be bought or sold .
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo Buonarroti
Created in 1512, this is one of the iconic paintings of Michelangelo. The creation
of Adam is the painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Even though this is
one of the most replicated paintings of all time, it is only second in popularity to
Mona Lisa. The painting has become a symbol of humanity as the image
depicts the hand of both God and Adam on the verge of touching.

Created in 1512, this is one of the iconic

paintings of Michelangelo. The creation
of Adam is the painting on the ceiling of
the Sistine Chapel. Even though this is
one of the most replicated paintings of all
time, it is only second in popularity to
Mona Lisa. The painting has become a
symbol of humanity as the image depicts
the hand of both God and Adam on the
verge of touching. SCULPTURE
David is a masterpiece of Renaissance
SCULPTURE created between 1501 and
1504, by Italian sculptor, painter, architect,
poet MICHAELANGELO. It is a 4.34- metre,
5.17-metre with a base marble statue of a
standing male nude. The statue represents
the Biblical hero David, a favored subject in
the art of Florence. Originally commissioned as one of a series of statues of
prophets to be positioned along the roofline of the east end of Florence
Cathedral, the statue was placed instead in a public square, outside the
Palazzo Della Signorina, the seat of civic government in Florence, where it was
unveiled on 8 September.
Hercules and Cacus is a white sculpture to

the right of the entrance of the Palazzo
Vecchio in the Piazza della Signoria,
Florence, Italy. This work by the Florentine
artist Baccio Bandinelli was commissioned
as a pendant to David, which had been
commissioned by the republican counsel
of Florence, under Piero Soderini, to
commemorate the victory over the Medici.
The colossus was originally given to
Michelangelo and meant to complement
the David but later appropriated by the
Medici family as a symbol of their renewed
power after their return from exile in 1512,
and again in 1530.

Another feature of Renaissance art that arose from the scientific spirit is the
new concept of space which manifested itself in painting and architecture as a
geometric or linear perspective. The possibility of portraying space and depth
on a two-dimensional surface brought the artist to the threshold of science.
An example of linear perspective in painting is Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Last

Supper. In this work, the principal lines on the ceiling, walls, and floor of the
hall can be traced to converge at a point behind the head of the central Christ
figure.
The painters of the first half of the 15th century (Early Renaissance) were
Massaccio and Piero della Francesca.

Massaccio continued Giotto’s preoccupation with volume, made anatomical

studies, and explored chiaroscuro effects. Piero della Francesca, a highly
intellectual painter, developed the science of perspective and stressed simple
forms and geometric structure.
The second half of the 15th century (High Renaissance) saw the evolu- tion of
landscape-the horizon line was set slightly above or below the center of the
painting and the division of planes determined the foreground, middle ground,
and background.
Among the painters were Raphael and Perugino, his teacher, who influenced
him with the quiet and gentle atmosphere of his landscapes; Fra Angelico, with
his reverent, childlike piety; Pollaiuollo, with his vigorous anatomical studies;
and Botticelli, with his languid and graceful maidens. One of the most exquisite
paintings of the Renaissance is Botticelli’s Birth of Venus which shows the
slender goddess, with long, flowing hair, poised lightly on a shell and wafted to
the shore by the wind-gods
The color is delicate, almost translucent, and the atmosphere is clear and
evenly lighted. The painting is an example of the linear tendency that persisted
in the Early Renaissance in Sienna and Florence and which contrasted with the
preoccupation with volume in the works of Giotto and Massaccio.
Towards the end of the Renaissance, figures assumed more dramatic postures
in painting as in sculpture. In painting, foreshortening was often employed, as
in the figures of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel, or those of Raphael’s large
murals called
Stanze in the chambers of the Vatican Palace. In sculpture, the figures
struggled against the tyranny of material, the marble block, in the twisting and
writhing attitudes of contrapposto. The sculptor dealt with the problem.

ARCHITECTURE
Architecture during the Renaissance was brought to the construction of

aristocratic residences, or palazzos, as well as churches. The palazzos in
Florence were placed in a setting, such as a piazza (square), to set off their
elegant façade. Usually three stories high, they were symmetrical. With flat,
rusticated facades and regular ornamentation. This generally consisted of
arches above the windows and, between them at regular intervals, Hat columns
called pilasters with capitals from the classical orders. The long, straight line of
the roof strengthened the massive, horizontal emphasis of the structure. The
building usually enclosed an interior court, as a common feature of Italian,
Spanish, and English Renaissance buildings was the U-shaped ground plan
opening onto a court, garden, or park with sculpture and fountains.
Outstanding Italian architects of palazzos were Michelozzi, who designed the
Medici-Riccardi Palace in Florence for Cosimo de Medici, and Leon Battista
Alberti, who designed the Rucellai Palace, also in Florence.
As to religious architecture, Brunelleschi designed the dome of the Florence
cathedral, while Michelangelo designed that of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
Overall, Renaissance architecture observed objective, mathematical standards
of measurement and proportion, in accordance with the scientific spirit of the
age. The structures not only revived the classical orders, but the ideals of
balance, symmetry, and proportion as well. These concerns gave the typical
Renaissance edifice the appearance of stability and elegant sobriety,
expressing the harmony of man with his world.
MUSIC AND THEATER
While Renaissance Italy distinguished itself in the visual arts and architecture
England saw the golden age of theater and music. In this period, William
Shakespeare, the great dramatist of all time, produced his memorable tragedies
(Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear) and comedies (Merchant of Venice, As You Like
It, The Tempest) for the Elizabethan stage. The Renaissance in England is also
remembered for its wealth of songs and madrigals, which contributed greatly to
the development of secular music.
MANNERISM
The Renaissance often said to be the beginning of modern times because of

its rationalism and scientific attitude, as well as its material progress. However,
the world-view of the Renaissance remained largely conservative and idealist
as it was based on the idea of an unchanging and eternal order. Nature was
viewed as a permanent reality offered to man like a spectacle or a closed field

for fiction. It was this static order governing man and nature that was at he heart
of Renaissance art before it caught a glimpse of new and unfamiliar possibilities
for Shakespeare himself warned: “ There are more things in heaven and on
earth than are dreamt of in philosophy.”
Mannerism in the arts may assume various forms. First, there may be
mannerism in subject. The meaning of a mannerist painting is often obscure
and ambiguous, and it may contain elements one cannot account for. In
Parmigianino’s Madonna of the Long Neck, who is the thin man in the
background holding a scroll? And what does the large unfinished column
signify?
Then there may be mannerism of space. The foreground, middle ground, and
background of the painting may seem to be unrelated because of abrupt
changes in scale. This is again true in the above-mentioned painting where one
observes the great discrepancy in scale between the Madonna and Child in the
foreground and the old man behind them. Thus the mannerist artist may treat
space arbitrarily or he may intentionally create unusual spatial effects, such as
in El Greco’s St. Martin and the Beggar in which there is an abrupt vertiginous
descent behind the two figures.
The painting may also show mannerism of value. The mannerist painter may
employ strong contrasts of light and dark which the subject may not necessarily
require and which may be cultivated for special effects, as in El Greco’s Vine of
Toledo, or for sensationalist effects, as in The Nativity by Beccafumi.
There is often found the mannerism of line, in which outlines are elongated and
the forms contorted and twisted. This is commonly found in the works of
Parmigianino.
There is, too, the mannerism of gesture, in which the hands may call attention
to themselves by their unusual, exaggerated, or dramatic gesture. Such as in
Parmigianino’s Vision of Saint Jerome
In painting, sculpture, and in architecture, the works of the Mannerist Period

are generally characterized by a sense of instability and ambiguity. In spite of
the presence of classical features. Outstanding architects of the period are
Giulio Romano, who designed the unusual Palazzo del Te at Mantua; Vignola,
who designed the Jesuit church of II Gesu in Rome: and Andrea Palladio with
his most famous work, the Rotonda (Villa Capra) at Vicenza. His architecture,
which is based on classicism but modifies it, is discussed in his treatise, The
Four Books of Architecture.

BAROQUE ART
Closely following the Renaissance was the great religious upheaval called the
Reformation that shook the whole of Europe out of its complacency. Religious
leaders, like Martin Luther, John Calvin, and John Knox demanded religious
reforms to put a stop to the abuses of the clergy, such as selling indulgences
and religious titles. They soon acquired a large following, and they eventually
broke away from the Catholic Church in order to establish the various sects of
the Protestant Church. From then on, Christendom was split into many factions.
The highly sensual and dynamic style that emerged from this period of crisis
was the baroque style. What are its features?
PAINTING
The baroque style is first of all, characterized by movement, energy. And

restlessness The formal balance and harmony of classicism gave way to
turbulent expression Lines zigzag, forms surge diagonally into space. The
winds of ardor and passion stir the forms that move in a smoky haze or amid
swirling clouds. This quality is found in the Crucifixion by Rubens and the
Descent from the Cross by Rembrandt. Both paintings have a related subject,
but each bears the stamp of the artist’s personality. While that of Rubens is
robust and colorful, Rembrandt’s is spiritual, even mystical.
One very important feature of baroque art is chiaroscuro. In the works of

Caravaggio, one of the first Italian baroque artists, light is the principal element,
as in the Conversion of St. Paul. Instead of serving forms by modeling them, it
is used to break down forms in a seemingly arbitrary manner. In the Calling of
St. Matthew by the same painter, light appears as a single, penetrating ray,
picking out details, and singling out the astonished face of the saint. This
preoccupation with light is also seen in the works of Rembrandt who treats his

figures more delicately, making them glow with an inner light, thus creating an
aura of holiness or mystery.
Aside from value, texture is another decisive element, since baroque art
primarily aims at reaching the emotions by seducing the senses. This element
is found at its best in the Dutch painters of the 17th century- in Rembrandt,
where cloth and everyday materials assume a rare and precious quality; in
Vermeer, where familiar objects are seen in a new, transforming light (Women
with a Water Jug); and in the masters of the still life, where an abundance of
glowing fruit and flowers, as well as food, precious vases, and wine glasses
attest to the middle-class prosperity of the 17th century Dutch.
Space was rediscovered in baroque art. This was especially true in the northern
countries (Holland. Flanders) where landscape came into its own as an
independent art form in the 17th century. What most characterizes the northern
landscape such as that of Jacob van Huisdael Hobbema, Van Ostade. De
Hooch, or any of the other “Little Masters” is the vast expanse of sky with light.
Boating clouds, while the distant horizon and deep space of the valleys and
streams stretch out into infinity. In this panorama of sky and land and water.
Man is but a tiny creature finding his way. The Dutch landscapists conveyed a
moral awe in the vast universe in which man is but a humble and toiling figure.
A unique treatment of space is also seen in the many paintings of interiors The
background of Rembrandt’s paintings is of a transparent darkness, hinting at
figures or objects dimly seen, or at openings that lead into deeper space, such
as in Bathsheba or the Night Watch In a typical Vermeer painting, Officer and
Laughing Girl or Young Woman with a Water Jug, there are windows that admit
light and at the same time imply a wide universe beyond the confines of the
room. The large cartographer’s maps on the walls literally allude to this larger
space.
The same treatment of interiors is also found in Velasquez’s Las Meninas,
which shows a door at the far end of the room where a man stands against the
light, while a mirror on the wall reflects the image of the royal couple to whom
the girl’s curtsy. On the right side, near the dwarf, light enters the room from
windows on two levels. The
space in the room is conveyed in an atmosphere of delicate densities that
situates the objects properly in space.
In Italy, however, the treatment of space in religious paintings is more

elaborate and grandiose. The most striking examples are the ceiling frescoes
of Pietro de Cortona (Triumph of Divine Providence), Guercino (Aurora). Or
Andrea del Pozzo. Their paintings create the illusion of space reaching

upwards into the sky, as forms- -saints and hosts of angels- seem to rise
higher on billowing clouds and disappear into the heavens. Because of their
striking illusionistic effect, solid architecture seems to dissolve into space.
ARCHITECTURE
An example of baroque architecture in Italy the Church of San Carlo alle
Quatro Fontane by the architect Francesco Borromini.
The building with an oval plan has a façade of giant columns, flanking niches
and recesses, and a fountain at the corner. Bernini, a noted architect as well
sculptor, is known for the oval piazza and colonnade at St Peter’s in Rome,
which, with the basilica and its environs, convey a sense of grandeur.
It was however, in Germany and in Spain that baroque architecture found its
richest expression. The German baroque churches and buildings are
particularly noted for their interiors in which painting and sculpture unite to
create a highly decorative setting. At first, the stucco decorations were still
symmetrical later, symmetry vanished in a profusion of ornaments, such as
plants with vines and trellises growing in all directions or jagged shell-like
motifs, when the baroque style gradually slipped into rococo. Interiors were
painted with a white background and gold highlights, and with painting in light
and airy pastel hues. A high mark of German baroque is the 18th century
Church of Die Wies in Bavaria with its magnificent interior

The last phase of Spanish baroque in the 18th century was known as the
churrigueresque style after its principal exponent. Jose Churriguera. Here
again, the retablo on the façade is covered with swarming ornamental motifs.
Churriguera introduced the use of large solomonic columns-twisted columns
with vines spiralling around them, as on the main altar of the San Esteban
Church in Salamanca.
An outstanding example is Spanish baroque is the Transparente Chapel in the

Toledo Cathedral. Here architecture becomes subordinate to ornament, and
light and dark effects on intricate sculpture opening into a high circular window
create the illusion of an opening infinity.
The baroque style, as an expression of religious emotionalism, eventually found

its way into Spanish and Portuguese colonies in Central and South America,
and in the East, particularly the Philippines, with the widespread
Christianization of the inhabits. It is possible that the highly visual and sensory
appeal of baroque contributed much to further the cause of Christianity in the
colonies where the style was combined with motifs.

In Mexico, the outstanding examples of colonial baroque are the Santuario de

Ocotlan in Tlaxcala and the high altar of the Santa Clara in Qereter, and in Peru,
there is the interesting façade of the Cathedral of San Francisco at Lima.
MUSIC
Baroque was a style which applied not only to the visual arts but also to music.
In music, baroque refers to the rich polyphonic music composed about the
period between 1600 and 1750. It was the period of vocal forms, such as the
oratorio and the cantata, and of instrumental forms such as the fugue.
The great composers of baroque music were

ROCOCO ART
The decadent court of the French kings Louis V and Louis VI developed a
hedonistic style known as rococo. The word comes from the French rocoille,
meaning shell or conch which was the predominant motif of rococo art.
Rococo, in fact, is an extension of baroque art in its ornate aspect. But while
baroque decoration still obeyed order and symmetry, rococo, on the other hand,
cast these aside, and ornament developed like an organic growth with spirals
and twisting lines, tendrils, fantastic shapes, and shell- like motifs, thus
becoming increasingly ornate. In architecture, structure became subordinate to
decoration, and solid walls seemed to dissolve in the profusion of swarming
figures. Much use was also made of optical illusion, and mirrors were used
extensively to fuse illusion and reality and to multiply images in infinite
perspective.
Rococo was, on the whole, an aristocratic art, as its subjects consisted of
gentlemen and ladies of leisure, whiling away their time in courtly pleasures. It
could be playfully erotic and superficial, as in the paintings of Eragonard, such
as The Stolen Kiss or The Swing.
THE STOLEN KISS
THE SWING

TOILETTE OF VENUS
THE TRIUMPH OF VENUS
Rococo paintings, in general, have a sense of intimacy that is not present in the
dramatic treatment of previous periods.
Of the rococo painters of the 18th century, Antoine Watteau was the least
superficial. He often drew his subjects from the theater, especially the
commedia dell arte-with its characters of Pierrot and Columbine, clowns, and
saltimbanques-because he was concerned with the difference between interior
and exterior reality. Though he moved in an aristocratic milieu, his paintings
express melancholy and nostalgia, and his figures, of a langorous grace, are of
exquisite fragility. His use of colors is muted and highly sensitive; his control of
light and shadow ranges from the darkest shades to tones that are a mere
whisper. His masterpiece is the Embarkation to Cythere in which the lovers
slowly move from the feathery trees in the foreground to a hazy, distant horizon
in search of a lost ideal.

THE LATE EIGHTEENTH AND THE NINETEENTH CENTURIES
NEO- CLASSICISM
During the centuries which marked the triumph of baroque, the classical trend
did not disappear but was pursued by two French artists, Nicolas Poussin and
Claude Lorrain, who studied in Rome where they were influenced by the
classical tradition.
FUNERAL OF PHOCION
The carefully planned landscapes of Poussin, where figures quietly go their way
amidst trees and hills, exude a remarkable serenity such as in the Funeral of
Phocion. Another painting. The Arcadian Shepherds, is an outstanding
example of French neo-classicism in its observance of balance- as the careful
placement of the figures readily show-as well as in its harmony and serenity.
HEROIC LANDSCAPE

Lorrain painted what has been called “heroic landscapes,” again with a sure
sense of balance and order, with detailed architectural settings of an ancient
Homeric period. The figures of men are subordinated to the landscape with a
distant horizon; the sea reflects the setting sun, its soft golden rays creating a
romantic, impressionistic atmosphere, as in The Embarkation of the Queen of
Saba.
It was also during this period, in the reign of Louis XIV, that the French Academy
was founded. The Academy established classicism-with its veneration of
antiquity and its formal discipline as the official style of the court. Artists who
wished to curry official favor worked in this style, until it was reduced to dry
formula and became spiritless and academic.
The classical style found its full expression in 17th century architecture in the
Palace of Versailles, built for the court of Louis XIV by Mansart and Le Vau.
The palace, with a garden in front, has three stories, with a central pavilion. The
whole is flanked by setback wings. The exterior is controlled and classical, but
the interior is baroque, with elaborate stucco decorations and mirrors reflecting
the gardens and adding to the illusion of space, especially in the historic Hall of
Mirrors. There are exquisite marble reliefs of the equestrian figure of Louis XIV,
the Sun King, who claimed to rule by divine right. The elegant gardens and the
system of radiating avenues with the palace as the focal point seem to include
the whole of nature. In grand perspective.
With the successors of Louis XIV, there was less rigid centralization of state
power, and classicism in France succumbed for a while to the rococo style. The
French monarchs became more and more decadent, and the French
Revolution in 1789 dealt a severe blow to the monarchy. But the Revolution
was betrayed by the opportunist Napoleon who seized power for his own ends
and began a regime no less corrupt than that of his predecessors. This
upheaval, too, established the bourgeoisie as the ascendant class in France
from then on.
In the neo-classical work of David, the figures make grand theatrical gestures,
and the composition resembles that of figures acting upon a stage. Subject
matter became anecdotal, as the story value of the painting was emphasized
for its didactic function.

THE DEATH OF SOCRATES
THE DEATH OF BRUTAS

GRANDIOSE CORONATION OF NAPOLEON
In the neo-classical work of David, the figures make grand theatrical gestures,
and the composition resembles that of figures acting upon a stage. Subject
matter became anecdotal, as the story value of the painting was emphasized
for its didactic function.
ROMANTICISM
PAINTING
Romanticism as an artistic style followed the French Revolution. While David

and Ingres represented the classical tendency, other artists diverged from it.
Romanticism stressed the individual freedom of the artist and his subjective
reaction to the world around him-to nature, people, and events. The world came
to be seen not as an exterior object in itself but as transformed by the emotions
and personal sensibility of the artist. The ideal of freedom, which was one of
the catchwords of the movement, encouraged spontaneity. The painter worked
quickly, his freer and looser brush strokes giving evidence of the process of
artistic creation. This is seen in the works of Eugene Delacroix, as in his Moorish
scenes of men and wild beasts in physical conflict. He cultivated surface
texture, impasto, and used a rich palette of colors.
With romantic spontaneity also came the cult of energy, even of power. Gros,
in his Bonaparte at Arcole or his Pesthouse at Jaffa, exalted the Napoleonic
figure as a symbol of energy and power. Gericault also glorified energy in
paintings of warriors on rearing battle steeds (Officer of the Chasseurs
Charging). Delacroix also pursued the same theme in his Jacob.

Wrestling with the Angel and in his North African paintings of turbanned men
battling with tigers. Delacroix, however, is known best for his Liberty Guiding
the People, a patriotic painting of the French Revolution, in which the central
figure of a woman beckons the soldiers forward with the flag the raises high
above the field of dead and wounded, while the drummer boy beside her
valiantly charges with a pistol upraised. These two figures which form strong,
vigorous diagonals stand out amidst the smoke and confusion of battle.
Another important aspect of romanticism was an interest in social issues,

leading to a larger participation and concern in the events of the time. Socio-
political problems in France and the sordid working conditions brought about by
the Industrial Revolution in England developed social conscious- ness, which
in the visual arts as in literature took the form of naturalistic representation. As
example of the naturalistic aspect of romanticism is Gericault’s Raft of the
Medusa, which is a scene of desperate people drifting at sea. The use of
chiaroscuro and the diagonal, tense and straining lines create a dramatic effect
along with the almost brutal realism in the portrayal of the dying and the dead.
On the other hand, romanticism had its passive aspect. The heart and the
emotions took precedence over reason which was put to question: “The heart
has its reasons which reason cannot understand” (Pascal). For some artists,
this gave rise to emotional instability, feelings of melancholy of despair,
fatalism, and desolation.
The great Spanish painter of the Romantic Period was Francisco Goya,
With his powerful paintings and engravings. He fearlessly satirized royalty in

unflattering portraits (The Family of Charles IV)

While in his black paintings, such as

Cronos Devouring His Children, he
showed an obsession with horror.
In his powerful anti-war engravings,

Los Caprichos and the Disasters of
war, be unflinchingly probed the
horrors of tyranny and aggression,
and in one of them warned that “the
sleep of reason breeds monsters.”
On the lighter side, however, were the landscapists who discovered the poetic
reality of nature that resides in objective appearance. In England there was
Constable, with his quiet, pastoral scenes (The Haywain, Salisbury Cathedral)
Who seemed to embrace the whole of nature with his delicate atmospheric
effects. There was also Turner, who painted seascapes, where sea and sky
become two powerful competing elements.

In France, the landscapist of the period was Corot, with his intensely lyrical
landscapes of trees with light, feathery leaves that tremble in the wind, and of
maidens and shepherds in reverie.
These three artists, Constable, Turner, and Corot, were the first to leave the
confines of the artist’s studio and to paint outdoors under natural lighting
conditions.
MUSIC
In music, the visual artists had their counterpart in the romantic composers
who freed music from the restraints of the classical form. Frederick Chopin, who
himself lived passionate life in association with George Sand a French woman
novelist, deviated from the classical sonata and created in freer forms such as
nocturnes, ballades, preludes, and etudes and incorporated Polish folk motifs
in his mazurkas and other pieces. In his music, as in that Liszt, Schubert, and
Schuman, emotion triumphs over intellect and the beauty of the melodic line
holds way over consideration of structure. In Germany, Richard Strauss ( not
Johann Strauss of the waltzes) and Wagner were the foremost romantic
composers. Wagner’s epic opera, The Ring of the Nibelungs, and Strauss’
Thus Spake Zarathustra carried over into music the Nietzschean cult of
superman.
REALISM
In the second half of the 19th century which saw the rise of industrial capitalism,
and with it the growth of the working class, a group of artists advocated a new
and more honest way of seeing. These artists, known at the realists, renounced
once and for all the traditional subjects of art. Especially the gods and
goddesses of classical mythology, which clearly enough had no more place in
an industrial society. They preferred to derive their subjects from the working
people and to show them as they are in their daily activities without idealizing
them. Thus, their main important lies in their revolt against stereotyped subject
matter and in their democratization of the subject matter of art.
This realistic trend was foreshadowed by baroque artists such as Caravaggio

and Rembrandt, who portrayed Christ and the saints with unflattering physical
details of age or of lowly origin, but who did not really take the common people
for themselves.
Of the realist artists, Francois Millet is known for his paintings of peasants in
the field (The Angelus, the Song of the Lark, The Man with the Hoe). He imbued

them with a solid and quiet dignity and his paintings exude a solemn and
religious atmosphere, not without a certain didacticism.
It was, however, the realism of Gustave Courbet which earned the scorn of the
critics. They expressed offense at the matter-of-fact and un- heroic subject
matter of his Stone-breakers, showing two men in ordinary working clothes
quietly and purposefully working on a stone wall. They were even more
offended by Courbet’s Burial at Ornumms which drew its characters from small-
town personages, the petit-bourgeoisie, whom the artist seemed to expose in
all their vanity and pettiness. Another important realist is Honore Daumier,
whose rare gift for social satire found expression in his prints (lithographs),
political cartoons, and paintings. While he lashed out at the corruption and
hypocrisy of the privileged class, as in The Legislature, he had a profound
sympathy for the poor and the oppressed, as in the Third-Class Carriage and
The Washerwoman. Daumier had a sense of the dramatic moment revealed in
a single look or gesture. He also had the gift of capturing the essential spirit of
human relationships.
With the works of Millet, Courbet, and Daumier, the realist artists made the
important contribution of extending the significance and function of art to include
as legitimate subject the hitherto neglected common people. Not feasting and
regaling themselves with drink as in the works of the little Dutch masters of the
17th century, but as victims of oppression.
ART NOUVEAU
At the turn of the 19th century, a reaction to industrialization and to the machine
gave rise to a new style which became known as art nouveau Plant motifs
proliferated in this style characterized by a sinuous, undulating line transforming
itself continually into tendrils, stems, leaves, veins, and petals, or further
metamorphosing into woman’s hair, waves, or strange animal forms.
The moving spirit behind art nouvea was the Englishman, William Morris, an
articulate theorist who strove to repair the widening gap between the artist and
society, and between art and function. He stressed the importance of communal
effort in art and expressed a nostalgia for the pre- industrial society with its
guilds, in which the artist-craftsman found pleasure in his work and pride in his
products. His was the first voice raised against mass production, which, he
foresaw, would lower artistic quality. He found company with the Pre-
Raphaelites-Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Burne Jones, and Maddox Brown.
Together they propagated the art nouveau style in making household objects
such as lamps, vases, and furniture, as well as in leatherwork, metalwork, and
embroidery.

The Pre-Raphaelites were so-called because they drew their inspiration from
art before Raphael and the High Renaissance, an art that was medieval in
feeling and religious sentiment combined with tenderness and naivete, as in the
works of Fra Angelico and Simone Martini. It was also an art of strong linear
emphasis and was therefore two-dimensional and given to the arabesque.
Rossetti discovered a kindred soul in William Blake, with his highly original and
imaginative works, characterized by sweeping lines and strong rhythms. He is
known best for his illustrations of Dante’s Divina Commedia and his scenes
from the Old Testament. Blake was an intense visionary who saw harmony and
rhythm in all living forms. His poems collected in Songs of Innocence and Songs
of Experience-the most famous of which are “The Tiger” and “The Lamb”-reveal
his profound personal mysticism.
SYMBOLISM
In France, the aestheticism of the period led to the theory of “art for art’s sale
This theory placed the importance of form or the formal aesthetic elements over
meaning of content. The artist, renouncing society, retirad to his ivory tower and
became absorbed in art as a private exercise. The trend began with Baudelaire,
whose seductive poetry often celebrated moral decay (The Flowers of Evil) or
invited one to escape to primitive islands untouched by civilization or to artificial
edens of opium.
Poetry soon took the direction of symbolism, with Baudelaire, Rimbaud and
Verlaine as precursors, and developed with the poets Mallarme, Valery, and vs
TS Eliot. The influence of symbolism on subsequent art lay primarily on its
affirmation of the theory of “art for art’s sake” which has since pervaded the
whole of modern art. In itself, however, symbolism was a new vision of the
universe in which one saw a living spirit in all things animate or inanimate and,
as in platonism, believed the world to be n perfect and material reflection of a
Universe of Perfect Forms. Symbolist poetry also expressed the idea of
synesthesia, in which the various senses intermingled and fused with one
another. This quality is found in the works, of Edgar Allan Poe, an American
writer whom Baudelaire hailed as a major influence on French symbolist
writings.
In symbolism, poetry was intimately wedded with music, which would have a
vague, indecisive quality. As the poet Mallarme declared, “To name an object
is to take away three-fourths of the pleasure.” Atmosphere, or the aura of the
object, rather than the object itself was the essence of symbolism. This quality
is observed in the impressionist music of Debussy with its hazy, Bosting effect
achieved by certain technical features, such as the use of the whole-tone scale,

seventh chords, and chromaticism. In the Philippines, one composer who was
influenced by Debussy is Antonio Molina, as in his composition, malikmata.
EXPRESSIONISM
A style derived from the crises of modern times was expressionism, so called
because of the primacy of feeling, often strong and violent, always intensely
personal, in the work of art. Expressionism is associated with the northern
countries of Europe. Its ominous and morbid quality has been linked with the
sado-masochistic temperament of northern peoples who have always had to
reckon with a harsh and difficult natural environment. It also reflects a society
on the brink of socio-political conflicts.
Vincent Van Gogh, a Dutch artist who spent most of his life in France, is named
a worthy predecessor of the movement, with his gnarled and tortured shapes,
his strong rhythms, as in Starry Night and Road with Cypress, in which the road,
the trees, and the stars seem to whirl together in one vast universal rhythm.
Two other artists who worked along the same line were James Ensor and
Edvard Munch.
In expressionism, nature and everyday objects, such as flowers, become highly

expressive of a mood or an emotional state. Flowers may become jagged, their
petals like violent gashes; living people are transformed into hideous skeletons
Expressionist artists used bright, screaming colors, dis- regarding the natural
colors of the object, in order to express emotion powerfully. Although the
Fauves also used colors in a personal way, they differ from the expressionists
in their gay, gaudy paintings, while the latter create grotesque and morbid
effects through color. The expressionists, too, use a great deal of distortion, in
the unnatural elongation of forms, or in the hideous or deathly grimace of their
characters. Reason gives way to emotion and to the irrational.
IMPRESSIONISM
From the beginning of the 20th century, however, with Paris as the art center
attracting artists from all over Europe, a number of styles developed from the
experimentation with form. Among the new styles which showed a
preoccupation with pure form were impressionism and its offshoots, cubism,
Futurism, and abstract art.
A new concept of painting arose which hinged on the crucial relation- ship of
form and content. As Maurice Denis said, as early as 1890, “Remember that a
picture before being a battle-horse, a nude woman, or an anecdote -is
essentially a plane surface covered with colors and assembled in certain order.”

Impressionism was a rebel movement against classicism and the French

Academy with its ideals of permanence, stability, and the intention of capturing
the eternal, absolute qualities of the subject, such as in a portrait, for the benefit
of posterity. The impressionist artist, on the other hand, saw the subject at a
particular moment in time, changing as it does from moment to moment. He
sought to capture the fleeting, elusive effects of atmosphere and light on the
subject.
The artists, favoring spontaneity, applied brushstrokes of pure color side by side
directly on the canvas, thus creating vibrant and fresh color relationships. They
shunned the brownish tones of academic painting and used cool colors, such
as blue or violet, for modeling rather than tones of gray or black. Thus shadows
were parple, violet, green, or blue, complementaries of the warm colors.
One of the foremost impressionists as well as the truest to the style was Claude
Monet. He is best known for his many versions of the Houen Cathedral as seen
at different times of the day. He also painted a series of water lilies in a pond
(Nympheus) as they changed with the changing light from season to season
Another outstanding impressionist is Auguste Renoir, known especially for his
delicate portraits of women and children.
FAUVISM
The impressionists use of bright colors was the principal aspect of Fauvism.
The group of Fauvist painters included Henri Matisse, Andre Derain, and S.
Bonnard whose striking, bold use of colors, which were no longer confined
within definite planes but spilled over freely, caused a disagreeing critic to call
them Fauves, the French ward for “wild beasts.” With color assuming primary
importance. They aimed at gay or startling compositions This is true of the work
of Henri Matisse who consistently produced paintings of colorful patterns and
designs (Woman with Hat. Large Red Interior)
An artist who is often associated with the Fauves, but who worked in a highly
individual style, is Paul Gauguin, who escaped from the stifling urbanism of
Europe to a primitive idyllic life in the South Pacific , particularly Tahiti. For his
subject matter of bronze-skinned women basking in the sun amid lush
vegetation, he is associated, too, with the style known as primitivism. His bright
colors are intensified by tropical sunlight. Space which he composed into planes
of solid color assumes a positive character. Some of his best-known works are
Hail Mary and Nevermore.

CUBISM
The movement to regain structure in painting was initiated by Cezanne, who is

known as the Father of Cubism. He advised painters to “treat nature by the
cylinder, the sphere, the cone, everything in proper perspective. So that each
side of an object or a plane is directed toward a central point.”
Cubism was further developed by Picasso and Braque in the first decade of the
20th century when it was modified by the influence of African primitive sculpture
with its tendency to abstraction. In 1907 Picasso painted the much-celebrated
Demoiselles d’Avignon, which must have been a shocker in its time, but which
marked a step in the progress toward abstraction begun by the Impressionists.
This painting has five female figures. Showing varied treatments of the human
figure. While some of them are of classical derivation instance and physical
type, two of them are mask-headed, indicating the initiation of primitive mystery
and ritual into Occidental painting. This painting has been described as marking
the end of Western chauvinism, for painters then began to turn to Asian and
African sources for inspiration and artistic renewal.
The works of the cubists generally fall into two periods-analytic cubism (1910-
1912) and synthetic cubism (1912-1918) With Picassos and Braque in the first
phase were Juan Gris and Fernand Leger. Analytical cubist paintings have the
appearance of great complexity, as the subject is fragmented into its numerous
aspects on the two-dimensional surface. The subject loses its recognizable
appearance, except for a few clues to its identity, such as eyes, part of a guitar,
or the neck of a bottle. Color is generally limited to tones of gray and brown.
Subjects are quite varied. Including portraits, landscapes, and still lives.
FUTURISM
An offshoot of cubism was futurism, which imparted a dynamic quality to the

forms of cubism. Futurism as a style in painting strove to analyze visually the
various stages of an action. It deals with the process of becoming, not of being,
or with the unfolding of an action, so that the painting may seem to correspond
in photography to a series of multiple exposures of one action on a single film.
The work of Marcel Duchamp, Nude Descending a Staircase, expresses this
intention. A number of Italian artists took up the style in the period preceding
World War I to glorify modern speed, industrial mechanization, and militarism.
Examples are Gino Severini’s Armored Train and Giacomo Balla’s Automobile
and Noise, or his better known Dog on a Leash.

REFERENCES:
Art Perception and Appreciation, Chapter 4: Western History page 186-210.

Factsheet 5.1 - Art History

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ART APPRECIATION: Art History

TOPIC: RENAISSANCE AND MANNERISM, BAROQUE AND ROCOCO,

Renaissance, a word borrowed from the French language, literally means

THE RENAISSANCE IDEAL OF MAN

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knowledgeable in a number of fields-philosophy, science, art, including painting

THE GREAT MEN IN RENAISSANCE

MICHAELANGELO LEONARDO DA VINCI

Was a great painter, sculptor, architect, and poet. Was a painter,

PAINTING AND SCUPLTURE

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The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo Buonarroti

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Created in 1512, this is one of the iconic

Hercules and Cacus is a white sculpture to

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An example of linear perspective in painting is Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Last

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Massaccio continued Giotto’s preoccupation with volume, made anatomical

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Architecture during the Renaissance was brought to the construction of

MUSIC AND THEATER

The Renaissance often said to be the beginning of modern times because of

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In painting, sculpture, and in architecture, the works of the Mannerist Period

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The baroque style is first of all, characterized by movement, energy. And

One very important feature of baroque art is chiaroscuro. In the works of

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In Italy, however, the treatment of space in religious paintings is more

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An outstanding example is Spanish baroque is the Transparente Chapel in the

The baroque style, as an expression of religious emotionalism, eventually found

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In Mexico, the outstanding examples of colonial baroque are the Santuario de

The great composers of baroque music were

GEC Factsheets # 5.1| ROSE ANN ABLETES BSED 1-D

THE STOLEN KISS

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THE TRIUMPH OF VENUS

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THE LATE EIGHTEENTH AND THE NINETEENTH CENTURIES

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THE DEATH OF SOCRATES

THE DEATH OF BRUTAS

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GRANDIOSE CORONATION OF NAPOLEON

Romanticism as an artistic style followed the French Revolution. While David

GEC Factsheets # 5.1| ROSE ANN ABLETES BSED 1-D

Another important aspect of romanticism was an interest in social issues,

With his powerful paintings and engravings. He fearlessly satirized royalty in

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While in his black paintings, such as

In his powerful anti-war engravings,

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This realistic trend was foreshadowed by baroque artists such as Caravaggio

GEC Factsheets # 5.1| ROSE ANN ABLETES BSED 1-D

GEC Factsheets # 5.1| ROSE ANN ABLETES BSED 1-D

GEC Factsheets # 5.1| ROSE ANN ABLETES BSED 1-D

In expressionism, nature and everyday objects, such as flowers, become highly