On one hand, we have the very mysterious, very mystical Romaticism. This art style is characterized by strong emotions and the usage of nature as the focal point of the individual works. Many times, we see the struggle man encounters when faced with the brute force of nature. During this period, we also see many paintings of shipwrecks to better facilitate this view of man vs. nature.
During the 18th century, Romanticism favored emotion over reason and intellect. The greatest limitation was not the logical. The greatest limitation consisted of the human senses, feelings and emotions.
Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows, as shown above, is an oil on canvas painting by John Constable created in 1831 in England, most likely in Salisbury. This painting is simply a breathe of fresh air to me. I look at it and I feel so much. This is a great example of Romaticism because we see many symbols from nature clashing with the tiny human barely noticeable. First and foremost, we see the rainbow. Seemingly a symbol of hope in what looks to be a turmoil filled sky. Either it has passed or it is coming, but either way, the sky looks like trouble. I feel so much looking at this painting because the sky gives off a looming feeling that almost incites fear, even though I am not in the painting myself. I fear for the man and his animals. The lighting, or the lack thereof I should say, paves the way to illuminate the one slightly faded, yet fully magnificent rainbow in the background.
On the other hand, we have the very open and very bright Impressionistic art. This art style is characterized by light brush strokes, emphasis on individual characteristics and usage of bright light - or brighter subject matter. In this style, we see artists try to snapshot one moment in time in order to show it to the audience. They would separate colors, instead of mixing them, so that when an individual were to look from afar, they would see the colors blended. This style, in turn, created vibrancy in comparison to mixed colors. We also see many scenes of contemporary life in this form of art. It dealt with the lives of normal every day people instead of the upper class.
Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son is one such example of Impressionistic art. It is an oil on canvas piece created in 1875 by Claude Monet. It was created in Argenteuil in France. It perfectly captures the gist of Impressionism. It shows light, pure colors and an almost detail lacking view through its light brush strokes. I think "How many moments as perfect as this can we have in a lifetime?" This moment, to Monet, was perfect enough to paint and capture to save forever. The brightness of the sunlight illuminating her parasol and showing her shadow on the ground, along with the bright yellow tips of the wildflowers at her dress encapsulates the usage of pure colors common in this art style.
Although, to me, Impressionistic art leaves a lot of detail out, I believe the trade-off for pure, vibrant colors make it worth the look. Comparing Romanticism and Impressionism seems like comparing apples and oranges. They both have their positives and negatives, but they are very different and there are ideals that make each style unique. I like them both, but I cannot say which I like better. If the paintings above were switched into the other style - say the first piece was made into an impressionistic painting, I do not think I would appreciate either one as much.
References:
Gersh-Nesic, Beth. "Khan Academy." Khan Academy. Khan Academy, n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2016. <https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/becoming-modern/avant-garde-france/impressionism/a/a-beginners-guide-to-impressionism>.
"Impressionism Movement, Artists and Major Works." The Art Story. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2016. <http://www.theartstory.org/movement-impressionism.htm>.
Pollitt, Ben. "Khan Academy." Khan Academy. Khan Academy, n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2016. <https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/becoming-modern/romanticism/england-constable-turner/a/constable-salisbury-cathedral-from-the-meadows>.
"Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son." Art Object Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2016. <http://www.nga.gov/content/ngaweb/Collection/art-object-page.61379.html>.
I enjoyed your comparison between these two works of art. I don't find art fascinating but I really like the Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadow. I can see atlot of thought and time went into it. The Impressionism art really irritates me in the ways of art. I find it unfinished and reminds me of my kindergartners art work. You might find the work of Thomas Cole interesting. I really enjoy his "The Voyage of Life" series, its very peaceful.
ReplyDeleteYou've done a great job at comparing these types of art. And I agree with you that they are both amazing and hard to choose from. I also like Claude Monet's Women With a Parasol. I really like the bright colors and how Monet did such an amazing job at blending everything together, but in such an elegant way. My favorite pieces of Claude Monet’s, are his Waterlilies at Giverny pieces. These are art pieces he did later in his life, and I really enjoy the variety of colors he uses in all of these paintings. Below is an article that explains the background of Claude Monet’s Waterlilies at Giverny if you are interested.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.robinurton.com/history/impressionism.htm