As the Enlightenment takes hold, movements in art begin to emerge. Rather than eras and centuries defining art periods, intentional collaboration and experimentation from artists start to create ‘-ism’s in art. The first of these is Neoclassicism, which is a rebirth of classical values and figures, not only for their artistic merit but also for their deeper meanings of logic, morality, and politics. Part of what began this movement was The Grand Tour of Europe that wealthy young men embarked upon as part of their education. As they brought copies of ancient art back to their homes, the artists and tastes of the time were affected.
Anton Raphael Mengs was a key artist for the movement, and we discussed his painting Parnassus in class. The composition, colors, and figures all echo Raphael’s painting of the same name–the pieces are both balanced, simple, and noble. Mengs however, maintains the lightheartedness from the Rococo period, and so his scene is much less severe. Architecture too, shifted as Neoclassicism took root. Chiswick House is an English house modeled after Italian villas designed by Andrea Palladio. Palladio, in turn, modeled his Villa Rotonda after the Pantheon in Rome, and so there is a clear influence from antiquity.
Benjamin West is an artist who studied with Mengs, and who painted a contemporary event as a history painting. The death of General Wolfe was a recent event at the time the painting was created, and it was a hugely popular piece. General Wolfe is posed like Christ, indicating and reinforcing his status as a national hero, while the figures surrounding him are stoic and restrained. A common belief among the bourgeoisie at the time was that society corrupts, and that the vices of modern living were more detrimental than a lack of society . Therefore, when West paints an Iroquois man, he is a ‘noble savage,’ an ideal of connection to the real world and stoicism.