Neoclassicism & Romanticism

     Politics and societal conditions have and will continue to influence art. The works of artists can reflect the political and societal conditions of a specific historical period and the techniques of a particular art movement.  Two art movements that emerged and where practically opposites, were the Neoclassicism and Romanticism. Both Neoclassicism and Romanticism were essentially opposites because of how different the characteristics such as tone, subject matter, technique, and role of each art movement were. A prominent artist of the Neoclassical style would be the French painter Jacques-Louis David; I will be analyzing two of his paintings: Socrates at the Moment of Grasping the Hemlock and Marat at His Last Breath. Two well-known artists of the Romantic style are the French painter Theodore Gericault and the Spanish painter Francisco Goya; I will be analyzing Gericault’s The Raft of the Medusa and Goya’s The Executions of the Third of May 1808.

            In France, Neoclassicism emerged around the 1760’s, the years leading to the revolution, and was influenced by patriotism and virtue. Artists like David would use their painting as way of setting an example of how the people should fight for general welfare against the corrupt state. Artist would look back to the past for inspiration and portray the heroes of classical antiquity. Neoclassical paintings were inspired by myths, antiquity, and Greek and Roman classics, which made the subjects of these paintings, include gods and goddess and the theme of honor. Techniques that are seen in Neoclassical paintings include the use of muted colors, smooth, no visible brushstrokes, idealized figures and proportions, which in effect made the tones more serious, clam, rational, organized and calculated.

            Romanticism first appeared around the beginning of the nineteenth century and would ultimately prevail Neoclassicism. Unlike Neoclassical painting, Romantic artists drifted away from conformity and were more inclined to being independent. Unlike the Neoclassical artists, painters like Gericault and Goya did not look back to classical antiquity and myths for inspiration, but rather were inspired by nature and the middle and Far East. The subject of Romantic paintings did not include gods and goddess, but in contrast were more about the common people, contemporary events, political, and nature. In contrast to Neoclassical painting, techniques included the use of rich colors, rough, blurry, and visible brushstrokes which in the end give a chaotic, dynamic, dramatic or spontaneous tone.

            In David’s Socrates at the Moment of Grasping the Hemlock, it depicts the moment in which Socrates accepts the poison which will ultimately end his life. The painting is a great example of Neoclassicism because of the characteristics it consists of. The composition of the painting has most of the scene happening in the foreground, Socrates surrounded by his disciples, which gives it little depth. One can see that David was clearly inspired by Greek Classical, being that the subject of the painting was Socrates. Socrates seems to parallel Christ because of how the he seems to illuminate because of how the light hits him, the way is dressed in white, and how is surrounded by his followers. David’s painting was call to arms for the people of France because it comments that the people should question authority. In his other painting, Marat at His Last Breath, depicts Marat as he dies in his tub after being surprised by his attacker. David has chosen to depict Marat very saint-like to emphasis the revolutionary’s self-sacrifice. Marat also seems to parallel Christ in the way the light seems to illuminate him and his nudity seems emphasize heroic stature.

In The Raft of the Medusa, Gericault portrays the moment in which survivors of the shipwrecked frigate Medusa see a rescue ship and do not know if they have been seen in return and frantically try to attract its attention. The painting clearly portrays the Romantic characteristics such as the very dramatic tone that is depicted through the despair that it shown by the survivors of the shipwreck. David also chose to depict a more contemporary event and common people rather than gods and goddess from Classical antiquity as seen in Neoclassical paintings.

In The Executions of the Third of May 1808, Goya chose to depict an execution to be testimony of the courage and suffering of the Spanish people at the hands of the French. Goya proves to be a great artist of the Romantic style because of his use of rich colors, visible brushstrokes and the creation of a soft and blurry surface, unique to the Romantic style. Like Gericault, Goya paints a very dramatic scene in which common people are again portrayed. The central figure also seems top parallel Christ, because of how he holds he arms stretch out and is brightly illuminated but nonetheless is also depicted showing fear. Romantic artists would be more expressive because of the different techniques utilized to create a more dynamic and dramatic composition. 

For More Info http://www.all-art.org/history356.html

Work Cited

Eisenmen, Stephen and Thomas E. Crow. Nineteenth Century Art: A Critical History. London: Thames and Hudson, 1994. Print.