The ‘exotic’, style-based, unearthly spirit of Romanticism was discussed in this lecture through examining works by contemporary artists of this era, as well as its relationship with previous periods’ artistic styles. For example, Ingres’ Grande Odalisque were put into comparison with Titian’s nude paintings, paralleling the idealistic and erotic depiction of the female body, which evoke emotional response from its viewer. With the underlying unfamiliar subject of ‘woman in a Turkish harem’, we could also start to sense the beginning of an interest towards the strange and, again, exotic, perhaps rooted from the traveling practice of the previous era.
Even historical subjects are treated differently in this period, as artists seem to put more and more interest into expressing and invoking emotions, rather than stoically presenting an event in a matter-of-fact and/or moralizing manner, which artists of the Neoclassicism movement probably would have done. In Géricault’s Charging Chasseur or Gros’s Napoleon at Jaffa, we sense an otherworldly, somewhat exaggerated depiction of reality, with the artists, intentional or not, elongating or composing the figures in unnatural ways, stark contrast of light which intensify the scene. In Gros’s case, this painting also had underlying messages to it: The artist, and in relation, the commissioner, was comparing/ or equating Napoleon, to the king of France, with him having the ability to dispel an illness just by touch.Perhaps the most important, and impressive piece of art made during this era for me was Géricault’s The Raft of Medusa. Gros managed to capture the chaotic, somewhat theatrical atmosphere of the moment when the raft’s passengers realize that there is a (albeit very slim) chance for them to be saved, with the mixture of despair and unbridling hope. With the knowledge that this is done through extensive research with the real survivors of the incident, as well as the fact that Gros was an abolitionist, we could see the intentionality behind the initial pile of mesmerizing chaos of the world depicted under his brush.