Author: Gabriella Landau (Page 2 of 3)

In today’s class we started talking about the Rococo period of art in the 18th century. After the death of Louis XIV in 1715, the world of art shifted. Louis is the longest reigning monarch in all of history and so his death signified an important end to classicism art and moved to a new style called Rococo. We started looking at some interior spaces in the 18th century which are considerably different than what we know today. The uses of the beautiful gold accents tables and chairs and white walls with organic, arabesque, and scroll like designs compare very differently to the 17th century Baroque period.

Looking more into the artwork of the Rococo period, the style of painting changes from using line to only using paint which creates a airbrush, blended painting. In Rococo paintings the use of pastels is very prominent, we will not see any harsh reds, or blues like in the 17the century. A painting I particularly enjoyed was the The Swing made by Jean Honoré Fragonard in 1767. Even though there is an erotic meaning behind it, I really enjoy the color palette and how whimsical and as used in class “fluffy” the painting is.

In todays class we visited the Colby Art Museum and discussed the types of printmaking. We learned about two techniques of printmaking one being relief which is the carving into wood and the other being Intaglio, which uses etching, drypoint and engraving. We examined a bunch of artworks and distinguished what technique was used by closely looking through a magnifier to differentiate the lines and patterns.

In today’s class we continued with the Baroque art in Italy and moved into Spain. We first looked at the Gianlorenzo, Bernini, David sculpture made in 1623. Bernini was a very talented artist considering he made a life-size marble sculpture in 7 months. This marble sculpture represented David in two different positions. His face represents one while his body throwing a disc is representing another. Another piece made by Bernini was the The Ecstasy of the St. Teresa made in 1645-52. This area is capturing the vision of Teresa and the reality of the sculptures. The sides have viewers sculpted to represnet witnessing this event occur.

We discussed other artists work at the end of class and the one which stood out to me the most was the portrait by Diego Veláquez Las Meninas, 1656. I really enjoyed the dynamic of this artwork because it makes you really think the positioning of everyone. Diego being the artist in the painting and also the painter is interesting because you can tell my his head positioning and eyes. Since he had to paint himself, he is the only one with direct eye contact. The other people in the portrait are apart of the royal family. My favorite part is the dog which is so realistic and the mirror in the back of the wall depicting the royals getting painted behind the viewer but reflected onto the wall.

In today’s class we finished talking about the High Renissance Art in Northern Europe by looking at Pieter Brugel the Elder and his The Blind Leading the Blind artwork created in 1568. I enjoyed the style of this artwork because of the direction your eyes took when looking at it. The artwork was made on a long elongated piece of wood that was read downhill from the top left to bottom right. We also looked into his art of landscapes Harvesters and The Return of the Hunter both created in 1565. Brugel created these pieces for visual enjoyment rather than putting ant significance or story behind them.

We shifted over to the Italian Baroque Art period which then we talked about the counter reformation which took place in the 16th and early 17th century. This was between the Roman Catholics opposing the Protestants Reformation to create the Catholic church which began the Council of Trent in 1545. Through this period new forms of art were created involving more religious aspects.

In today’s class, we finished discussing Mannerist art and how it can be perceived as “weird.” We looked into Agnolo, Bronzino, and his Allegory with Venus and Cupid Piece. As Professor Plesch said, this artwork was created to be a “conversation piece.” People could sit down and discuss the many scenes occurring and why they might be added to this painting. Another portrait from Angnolo is the portrait of Eleonora and her son. We talked about the many things that stood out to us when looking at this piece, including her exquisite and expensive dress with pearls covering it and the vibrant blue background symbolizing the virgin.

We then moved into the High Renaissance in Northern Europe. Albrecht Bürer, a famous artist of this time, was born in Germany. He monogrammed every piece of art he created and had many influential pieces. We looked into his Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse woodcut piece made in 1498, which was meticulously carved out and detailed. Bürer also did a lot of sketches. His sketch and watercolor of the rabbit was one of my favorites since a lot of time and precision must have gone into his creating it.

In today’s class, we talked about Michelangelo. He was an Italian Renaissance painter born in 1475 and an influential sculptor, artist, and architect. We spoke of the High Renaissance period of Michelangelo’s work first. His contemporary art at this time embodied the ideal artist and Neo-Platonism. A lot of his pieces were made in solitary, and that’s how he liked it. One of his well-known pieces was the Pietà, a sculpture created in 1498-1500. This sculpture was an elegant marble piece of Jesus and Mary. It was derived from the Roettgen Pietà, which came from the more significant scene of Giotto’s Lamentation in 1305-10. I enjoy Michelangelo’s piece of Jesus and Mary the best because of the fine detail of the marble and polish.
We then moved into the late Michelangelo period. During this time, the difference in his artworks from high to late Renaissance, was the use of colors . Thus, Michelangelo used secondary colors that were dimmed down and not primary. Michelangelo also demonstrated Mannerism art. This idea was brought up in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance. Mannerism art differed from high Renaissance art in its approach to harmonious ideals. Mannerism art was chaotic, bright, and had no space, while high Renaissance art had balance, proportion, and beauty. I enjoyed looking at Parmigianio’s Madonna with the Long Neck, made in 1534-40, because it was unusual and off-putting. The man in the right corner looking small rather than far away and Jesus looking rather large for a baby was what Mannerism was illustrated to be.

Today’s class delved into the High Renaissance period, a time of great cultural and artistic flourishing in Europe. Leonardo da Vinci, born in Vinci, was a pivotal figure of this era. His influence extended beyond art, encompassing fields such as science, math, engineering, and anatomy. Some of his most renowned works, including The Vitruvian Man, The Last Summer, and The Mona Lisa, are a testament to his diverse skills and insatiable curiosity about the world around him.

As we explored the Mona Lisa, a masterpiece created by Leonardo between 1503 and 13 and now housed in the Louvre, I couldn’t help but share my personal experience. I had the opportunity to visit the Mona Lisa last fall, and I was struck by its small size, considering its global fame. However, this aspect also added to its allure, making it more intriguing. The woman’s enigmatic smile in the portrait, a hallmark of this artwork, is what sets it apart from others, and it was a surreal experience to see it up close.
The Last Supper, another masterpiece by Leonardo, is a prime example of his meticulous approach to art. He employed math and symmetry to convey profound themes in the painting. For instance, the three windows in the background symbolize the halo of Christ, while the four panels on each side of the wall represent the seven sorrows, vices, and virtues of the virgin. The multiplication of 4 and 3 to get 12, corresponding to the 12 months in a year and 12 hours in a day, further demonstrates his mathematical precision and ability to infuse deeper meanings into his art.

In today’s class, we discussed the artist Masaccio. He was an Italian painter from the early Renaissance. He was born in 1401 and died in 1428 due to malaria. He was an influential artist because of how young he was when he created such magnificent pieces of art. One of his more famous pieces was “Tribute Money,” a scene made in 1425. This fresco painting is located in the Brancacci Chapel of the Santa Maria del Carmine church in Florence. Masaccio illustrates many diffrent scenes in the painting including St. Peter being painted 4 separate times. The painting tells a story of tax collectors approaching Peter and asking Christ if he pays the tax. In the left of the painting, Masaccio draws St. Peter catching a fish and opening its mouth to find the coin to pay the tax.

In Masaccio’s painting, he uses techniques similar to Giotto’s. The bright colors of the people make them stand out with the dull background while also incorporating highlights and warm colors to feel the depth of the painting.

A lot of Masaccio’s paintings portray different scenes. In his artwork of “The Holy Trinity with the Virgin, St. John, and Donors,” it is a trinity. This artwork represents the father, son, and holy spirit, which symbolize the Christian concept of god. Mosaccio was one of a few who incorporated a vanishing point into his artworks, and in this painting, he placed it at the eye level of the viewer, which helps with the realistic depiction of space.

Today in class, we discussed The Early Renaissance in the Fifth-Century Century. We started by defining what Studia Humanitatis is, which is the study of the work of humans or anything created by humans, like literature, history, art, and or philosophy. An example of studia humanitatis is the printing press in Italy in 1464. Paper was made from old clothing, such as rags, to spread knowledge in the 15th century.

We then moved on to comparing the Sacrifice of Issac. The competition was between 6 artists who each created a gilt bronze and wood panel. They were voted, and the finalists were Ghilberti and Brunelleschi. The panel was the sacrifice of Issac committed by Abraham, while the angel spared Issac’s life. The two panels had some similarities and differences; some of the main ones were the positions of Issac and Abraham. In Ghilberti’s, the sacrifice was to the left, while in Brunelleschi’s, the sacrifice is in the center, and the angel is grabbing Abraham’s arm, symbolizing Issa is “safe”. In Ghilberti’s, the angel hasn’t yet gotten to Abraham, so there is a sense of uncertainty as to whether Issac will die or not.

Looking more into Brunelleschi’s history, we looked into the Dome of Santa Maria Del Fiore, built-in 1420-36 by Brunelleschi. He referred to it as “the dome,” a beautiful architectural building located in the center of Florence. he had many sketches and models before deciding on a doubled-shelled dome with many structural details.

Today, we finished talking about the Well of Moses by Claus Sluter. We discussed the significance of these life-size figures of profits holding scrolls to represent the coming of Christ. 

We then moved on to intricately picking apart “The Arnolfini Portrait” by Jan Van Eyck, who was a painter at the service of the Duke of Burgundy and was a part of his household as a notable painter. In this portrait, Eyck hides symbols such as objects and specific details to convey the meaning behind the picture. For example, he paints merchants and “wife” shoes in sight for the viewer to see and symbolize standing on holy ground. He told loyalty by placing the dog in the foreground and putting fruit (peaches) by the window, symbolizing fertility. It is unknown whether this portrait was a marriage ceremony. Still, from the two witnesses in the mirror, the one candle was lit at midday, which was a wedding tradition, and from the placement of the merchant and wife, we can infer it was. 

We looked more into Jan Van Eyck’s self-portrait made in 1433. This self-portrait was made with oil paint due to the detail of the face. It is exciting that Eyck’s painting of The Arnolfini was only 33 by 22 inches, which is tiny for the detail added to it.