Rococo

Rococo

After the death of Louis XIV in 1715, the French aristocracy

was no longer required to live at Versailles.
Townhouses in Paris
Social gatherings
Enlightenment thinking:
The use and celebration of reason, the power by which
humans understand the universe and improve their own
condition.
The goals of rational humanity were considered to be
knowledge, freedom, and happiness.
Rococo

Rococo art began first as interior

design and reflected the attitudes
and pleasures of the upper class,
emphasizing their carefree lives.
Word comes from the French words
that refers to pebbles and seashells.
Ornate and playful:
Used decorative items such as shells,
plants, clouds, pearls, cherubs
Employed a graceful style that
favored warm, pastel colors, creamy
brushstrokes, and gentle curves.
Rococo

This is the style that appears in

films such as Beauty and the
Beast (2017).
Rococo

In painting, the dramatic

action of the Baroque style
gave way to this carefree
style as well.
No religious or history
paintings
Lighthearted subjects
When seen in the palaces
and wealthy homes for
which they were intended,
they added a final touch
of class and elegance.
Rococo

Rococo sculpture
was notable for its intimate
scale, its naturalism, and its
varied surface effects.
Rococo

In France, major artists:

Watteau
Fragonard In Spain: Goya
Chardin

In England:
Gainsborough
Reynolds
Hogarth
Wren
Rococo in
France
Antoine Watteau
Began his career as an
interior decorator
Moved Rococo into
painting
Court painter to Louis XV
Best known for paintings of
characters or scenes from
the theater as well as for
paintings that show the
French aristocracy at play.
Rococo in
France
Embarkation for
Cythera
Rococo in France

Ignoring the growing signs of unrest

leading to the French Revolution, the
upper class continued to devote their
lives to pleasure.
Their trivial pasttimes included spending
entire days in parks and gardens, playing
on swings, flirting, pampering pets,
eating/drinking, and engaging in gossip.
All of these subjects found their way into
paintings by Jean Honore Fragonard.

His style of painting exemplifies all that

was praised or criticized about this
irreverent era.
Rococo in France

.
Clearly influenced by Rubens, Fragonard preferred a
plump, healthy physique in his treatment of figures. When depicting
aristocrats, a round figure was considered a sign of health and
wealth.
Both Fragonard's men and women alike sported pale skin with
rosy highlights, slender fingers and toes, and upswept messy hairdos
that gave everyone the appearance of just rolling out of (if not still
in) bed.
Particularly in his outdoor scenes, he utilizes a soft, almost
nostalgic lighting scheme that blurs the edges of the figures and
softens the imagery.
Rococo in
France
The Swing
Rococo in France

Jean-Baptiste Chardin rejected the

delicately painted subjects of the court
artists.
Preferred to paint subjects similar to the
Dutch painters: peasants, middle class,
simple life.
Art about common people, doing
ordinary things.
Rococo in England

Artists outside of France responded in different ways to

the elegant and decorative style.
Most rejected the artificial subjects preferred by
Watteau and Fragonard, but kept the delicate, light
washed painting technique.
In England, artists made use of this technique to paint
portraits, scenes and events from daily life, and still lifes.
These paintings became more and more realistic over
time.
Rococo in England

Until this period in art, England could boast of only a few

outstanding painters and sculptors.
Due partly to Protestant Reformation: no religious images
were allowed, had a crushing effect on art.
Growth of wealthy aristocracy placed great importance
on visual art.
Portrait painting: very popular
Rococo in England

Sir Joshua Reynolds

Painter of fashionable portraits
Through study of ancient and
Italian Renaissance art, and of the work
of Rembrandt and Rubens, he brought
great variety and dignity to British
portraiture.
Skillful in capturing the sensitive and
fleeting expressions of children.
Idealized the imperfect.
Rococo in England

Thomas Gainsborough was

Reynolds' great rival.
Started by painting landscapes.
Became favorite portrait painter of
the elites.
Delicate brushwork, rich pastels
Skilled at depicting fashionable
clothing
His unconventional ways of painting
employed allegory and idealism.
Snuck in satire and commentary in
some of his work.
Rococo in England

Other artists in England at this time refused to cater to

the tastes of the aristocracy.
William Hogarth, like Chardin in France, was more
interested in painting the common people he found on
London streets and in taverns than the elite class.
Exposed immoral conditions and foolish customs
Used his art to tell a story, scene by scene, with great wit
and attention to detail.
Rococo in England

Scene I from
Marriage a La Mode,
The Marriage
Contract.
Rococo in England

Sir Christopher Wren was not a

painter, but an architect.
Following the Great Fire of London,
which burned many churches and
public buildings, as well as
homes, Wren was responsible for
designing new churches and
other buildings that had been
destroyed.
Rococo in
England
St. Paul's Cathedral
51 parish churches
Rococo in Spain

Francisco Goya
Eventually rejected the past and
looked to the future.
Early in his career, painted in the
Rococo style to gain fame and
fortune.
Appointed as court painter to the
Spanish king.
Portrait painter, influenced by
Watteau and Fragonard.
Rococo in Spain

Goya remained a painter in the Rococo style until he

reached middle age.
Following illness and war, his art changed drastically.
His art would foreshadow Romanticism.
Rococo in
Spain
Third of May, 1808
Rococo in Spain

As he grew older, Goya became more and more bitter and

disillusioned.
He turned increasingly away from subjects in the real world
because he did not feel they could best express his inner thoughts
and feelings.
Turned to dreams, imagination, visions, and fantasy.
Unlike anything ever seen before.
Using the mind as inspiration.
Difficult for others to tell what the art meant.
He challenged viewers to use their imagintions to interpret his work.
Rococo in Spain

The Colossus
Rococo in Spain
The "Black Paintings" series
Rococo in Spain

The so called "Black Paintings" are a group of fourteen

paintings from the later years of his life, likely between
1819 and 1823. They portray intense, haunting themes,
reflective of both his fear of insanity and his bleak
outlook on humanity.
Likely never meant to be seen by anyone other than
him.
Ripped off the walls of his house and put on display.
Most famous (or infamous): Saturn Devouring His
Children
From Rococo to Neoclassicism

The frivolity of Rococo art was eventually discarded by

fans of the Enlightenment, who wanted to see a more
"serious" art re-emerge.
This was particularly important in France, which wanted
to be seen as the art center of the world.
The French academies, or art schools, urged their
students to study the famous works of the ancients and
the Renaissance. This, they thought, was the best way to
become a great artist.
From Rococo to Neoclassicism

French artists then rejected the Baroque and Rococo

styles and turned to classical forms to express their
Enlightenment era ideas on courage, self sacrifice, and
patriotism.
This style became known as Neoclassicism.
Neo: new
Neoclassicism

Featured:
Balanced
compositions
Massive scale
Focus on mythology
or history
Noble gestures,
expressions (stoicism)
Neoclassicism

Style featured sombre colors, because the art was to be

seen as more "serious".
Use of straight, not curving lines.
Leading up to and following the French Revolution,
Neo-classicism was the predominant artistic style in
France (and in Europe and the USA from about 1750 to
1830).
Neoclassicism in France

One of the first artists to work in this style was the painter
Jacques-Louis David.
Active in politics
Loved ancient art
Taught him how to paint figures that looked realistic and
noble.
Learned to avoid details that could interfere with the
simple, direct statement he wanted to make in a work of
art.
Neoclassicism in France

The Oath of the Horatii, with

its severity and
geometric precision, is
generally considered as the
archetypal work of French
Neoclassicism.
Neoclassicism
in France
The Death of Marat
Depicts the aftermath of
the assassination of Marat,
a pivotal figure in the
French Revolution.
What do you think makes
this propaganda?
Neoclassicism
in France
Under Napoleon, following
the revolution, David
became the court painter.
Napoleon recognized
the value of propaganda,
and David knew how to
produce it.
Neoclassicism in
France
Marie Vigee Lebrun was another
Neoclassical painter, though different
from David.
Portrait painter for French aristocracy
and Marie Antoinette
Many portraits were extremely favorable
to the sitter, and were quite flattering.
Large, expressive eyes
Downplayed the less attractive details of
the face.
Neoclassicism in France

The Neoclassic style was carried to its highest point by

Jean Auguste Ingres.
Best known of David's students
Portraits are ranked as his best work, but he preferred to
paint large pictures glorifying historical and imaginary
events and people.
Neoclassicism in
America
Neoclassical architecture is
characterized by grandeur of scale,
simplicity of geometric forms, Greek or
Roman detail, dramatic use of columns,
and a preference for blank walls.
In the case of the United States (for
example), Rococo was seen as the style
of the aristocracy. The Neoclassical style
was more fitting for a place that wanted
to be considered a republic.
The same would apply to areas in
Europe who wanted to do away with the
old regime (France).
Neoclassicism
in America
Washington Crossing
the Delaware
Neoclassicism in America

Declaration of
Independence
Neoclassicism
in America
The Statue of Liberty
Gift from France
Neoclassicism in America

Artist: Auguste Bartholdi based his design of a female figure in neoclassical

style on Libertas, the Roman goddess of freedom, similar to Thomas
Crawford's "Statue of Freedom" (1863) which crowns the dome of the United
States Capitol Building.
Bartholdi originally wanted Libertas to wear a pileus - the cap given to
emancipated slaves in ancient Rome - but settled on a crown instead, to avoid
controversy. The seven rays which form a halo around her head symbolize the
sun, the seven seas, and the seven continents.
In Libertas's left hand she carries a tabula ansata, a keystone-shaped tablet
symbolizing the law. This bears the inscription "JULY IV MDCCLXXVI", thus
linking the Declaration of Independence with the concept of liberty.
In general, Bartholdi gave the figure a simple but powerful silhouette, which
was enhanced by its dramatic harbor location.
Romanticism

Romanticism is NOT this:

Romanticism

It's this.
Romanticism
And this
Romanticism

Romanticism was a response to the over intellectualized

Enlightenment, the spread of industrialization .
It is famous for showing up in literature and music, but it
also was a visual art movement.
Romanticism

Worship of nature. No society.

Emotion and passion rule over reason.
The imagination.
The individual (especially an outcast).
The sublime - spirituality but no religion.
Nostalgia for the past – especially the medieval past, before
industry. The era of King Arthur and chivalry.
Interest in the supernatural and the occult.
Nationalism.
Romanticism

In visual art, Romanticism:

Rejected Neoclassicalism
Focused on emotions, feelings, and moods of all kinds
including spirituality, imagination.
The subject matter varied widely including landscapes,
religion, revolution, and peaceful beauty. The brushwork
for Romantic art became looser and less precise.
Foreshadows Impressionism in that sense.
Romanticism

Encapsulates the
Romantic
movement.
Wanderer Above the
Sea of Fog.
Caspar Friedrich
Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog

The figure stands in contemplation and self reflection,

mesmerized by the haze of the sea fog as if it were a religious
and spiritual experience. He wonders in that moment about
the unforeseen future.
By placing his back toward the viewer he is not shutting them
out - rather he enables them to see the world through his
own eyes, to share and convey his personal experience.
This makes the figure something of a mystery to the viewer -
they are unsure what he is thinking or his reaction to the
landscape that they too are taking in.
Wanderer

By separating the figure and the viewer, the latter

focuses more on the beauty of the surroundings rather
than the man's role in nature.

Friedrich chose to paint this landscape vertically instead

of the much seen horizontal orientation. The upright
position of the canvas models the uprightness of the
figure in the painting.
Wanderer

As the viewer cannot see the figure's face, the tone is

questionable. In line with Friedrich's other works, and the
overall Romantic ideal, it seems fitting to believe that this
wanderer stands in awe of the spooky nature before
him.
Romanticism: Other Artists

Fuseli (England)
Delacroix
Gericault (both France)
Fuseli

Major influences: Michaelangelo and classical art.

Fuseli is famous for his paintings and drawings of nude figures
caught in strained and violent poses suggestive of intense
emotion.
Known also for dramatic foreshortening of figures; refers to
the technique of depicting an object or human body in a
picture so as to produce an illusion of projection or extension
in space.
Strong chiaroscuro, extravagant gestures and distortions of
scale, and a preference for new, often obscure, literary
subjects which stressed the demonic side of human nature.
fuseli

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4azULu4pPA
Delacroix

Fine-tuned Romanticism, incorporating the influences of great

masters such as Michelangelo and Peter Paul Rubens. He
developed his own personal style, with an affinity for showing pain
and suffering in his work through brightly colored canvases.
Though his style had evolved over the years, Eugene Delacroix
stayed true to his displays of emotion and intense colors. His
expression was uninhibited and his canvases exploded with energy.
The artist never hid his fascination for destruction and violence and
brought them to life through virtuous colors. He is still admired for his
bold, technical innovations.
Delacroix

Delacroix experimented with those of the masters before him. He

was somewhat self-taught from observing the works of
Michelangelo and Peter Paul Rubens.
Delacroix continued to paint with great vividness and emotion.
Liberty leading the People served to commemorate the recent
French Revolution and this canvas reflected a change in the artist's
style; he painted with passion and animation but the overall tone
was a quieter one.
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/later-euro
pe-and-americas/enlightenment-revolution/v/delacroix-liberty-leadi
ng-the-people-1830
Gericault

Recognizable by its individuality. This was a major tenet of his works,

which draws him tightly into the Romantic fold. Through his subject
matter, techniques, and stylistic quirks, the young and talented artist
painted like no other.
Gericault did not leave behind a large body of work, as he died at
such a tragically young age.
What he did leave, however, was impressive in its variety and what
ties all of his work together is an interest in the present tense, rather
than the depiction of historical events or classical themes that
characterized Neoclassicism such as horse races, shipwrecks and
portraits of the mentally ill.
Gericault

All of the above clearly break away from the typical subject matter
of Classical or Neoclassical artists, bringing the new ideals of
Romanticism into play.
Generally, for his portraits as well as larger compositions, Géricault
preferred a warm palette.
In the interest of focusing on the individual immediacy of painting,
Géricault utilized small brushes, applying the paint in precise, fluid
strokes that allowed little time or room for correction.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlVBaqyGKMs
American Romanticism

American art reflected what was happening in Europe,

American artists latched onto the appeal of landscapes
and presented nationalistic tendancies.
Landscape paintings were a form of advertisement, a
means to show off areas of the country that were
particularly picturesque and ripe for settling.
American Romanticism
American Romanticism
American Romanticism
American Romanticism
American Romanticism

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjF1NzZjCUk