Classical Art

During the classic period there is a shift of focus in all areas of art. This is due to a number of political, economical, and societal changes. Events such as the American Revolution, the birth of modern philosophy with Rene Descartes, and the return of the Greek ideals lead to many challenges to the ruling class (Kljaich). Examples of these challenges reflected in the arts include the rise of underground theaters, a shift from Rococo style to neoclassical style, and the use of art as a medium for social critique. Who or what is supporting all of these challenges to upper class? During the classical period the growth of the economic power of the middle class allows them to undermine and criticize the morals and policies of the upper class through the expressions of art.

The influence of the growing economic power of the middle class is reflected in the change of musical styles. The middle class could now afford to support a new market for writers, artists, and musicians: public concerts were held for the first time; music printing increased enormously; musical journalism began (thinkquest.org). In addition, composers were now free to reflect and appeal to the feelings of the masses instead of a select group of experts. One of the composers that exemplify these qualities was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. After he composed and played for a considerable number of the royalty he was discarded and joined the Freemasonry (wikipedia.org). Freemasonry was a fraternity that was self-governed separate from the dominate religious powers of the day. This new found freedom allowed Mozart to compose some of his more influential pieces.

The piece that I have chosen to share with you is Mozart’s string quartet in C, K. 465 Dissonance composed in 1785. The link provided above is to just the first movement. If you would like to listen to the entire piece it can be found in reference [1] in my sources below. This piece is pleasing to listen to and through the repetition of the melodies it is easy to tell that this piece was written more for the common person to listen to. The simply repeated melodies provided the perfect balance between sophisticated and unfashionable for the middle class of the time. I particularly enjoyed this piece because some of the subtle changes in melodies reminded me of watch Tom and Jerry cartoons as a child. After having set this dark, brooding tone in the introduction, Mozart then lightens things up in the Allegro with the entrance of a pure and innocent little melody in the violin (thinkquest.org).

Aside from musical compositions the paintings of the classical era, particularly the paintings of neoclassical style are another example of the influence of the middle class. “Neoclassical art is characterized by clarity of form; sober colors; shallow space; strong horizontal and verticals that render that subject matter timeless, instead of temporal as in the dynamic Baroque works” (smarthistory.org). One of the central artists that exemplify the qualities of the neoclassical era was Jacques-Louis David. His themes gave expression to the new values of the middle class including the civic ideals of devotion to duty, honesty, and austerity.

The painting above is The Death of Socrates by Jacques-Louis David and was painted in 1787 and currently resides in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. In this painting the famous Greek philosopher is in prison surrounded by his followers. Socrates is about to drink poisonous hemlock because he was condemned to death, unjustly, for his beliefs (artchive.com). David’s painting encouraged those who saw it to hold to their beliefs as reminder to all people of the era to stand up for what they believe in.  David agreed with that the human intellect, independent of the superstitions of the Christian church, could show the path of courage and sacrifice for the truth.

The above painting is Cornelia, Mother of Graccihi, Pointing to her Children as Her Treasures by Angelica Kauffman in 1785. In this work Cornelia, in white, is shown conversing with another woman. The other woman is showing off her material possessions and asks to see Cornelia’s gems. In response Cornelia shows the women her two sons and displays them as her greatest treasures. This is related to the rising middle class because most of them still only have their children as a source of wealth and it is also shows that the upper class wealth cannot buy everything.  Cornelia’s enduring loyalty and devotion to her children were both often used in art to show the desired traits in women of the time (wikipedia.org). Kauffman’s beautiful and touching rendering of the work is suffused with maternal feeling and sentiment (theartdaily.blogspot.com).

I am drawn to both of these paintings because of the messages behind them. By choosing to place value on family and virtuous behavior rather than just painting a work because some rich person commission it makes the paints attractive to me. Also the use of symbolism in the choice of colors in the paintings adds to the overall experience, especially the contrast between Cornelia and the women in red. The white dress of Cornelia adds to the purity of the message of placing family values over material possessions. Overall I believe the three works of art presented represent the ideals of the middle class during the eighteenth century as a result of the economic growth of the middle class.

Sources

[1] http://library.thinkquest.org/27110/noframes/repertoire/mozartk465.html 

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart 

[3] Kljaich, Lisa J. “Art Music Theater F 200.” 4.5- Classical Music. University of Alaska Fairbanks. Web. 24 January 2013. http://amtf200.community.uaf.edu/2009/04/24/04-music-3/

[4] http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/neo-classicism.html

[5] http://www.artchive.com/artchive/neo_classical.html 

[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Death_of_Socrates 

[7] http://theartdaily.blogspot.com/2010/05/angelika-kauffmann-cornelia-presenting.html 

[8] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelia_Africana

Baroque Art

 

 The Conversion on the Way to Damascus By Caravaggio (1601) Rome

The baroque style of arts was signified by chiaroscuro and tenebrism to create movement, emotion, and drama as opposed to the controlled and idealized simple art of the Renaissance.  A man by the name of Michelangelo Merisi, also known as Caravaggio, was one of the first artists to display traits of the Baroque era artwork. His work later inspired several painters throughout Spain, France, and Italy. Much of his work was commissioned for the Catholic chapels in an effort to counter the reformation. The goal behind the above painting and many others that it inspired were to evoke emotional and religious impact. Paintings representing scenes from the lives of the saints also provided good moral examples on which viewers could model their own behavior.

To further understand the meaning behind the painting shown above, a little history of the author and surrounding paintings will be discussed. This is second of two depictions of “The Conversion of St Paul” that were done by Caravaggio. The scene is this painting was redone as “Conversion on the Way to Damascus” by Caravaggio as part of a commission for the Cerasi chapel in Santa del Popolo and accompanied by “The Crucifixion of Saint Peter” and they were both completed in 1601 (Wikipedia.org). All of these paintings were a direct result of the goals of the Catholic Church during the Council of Trent. They were designed to inspire devotion and teach doctrine.

 The scene the painting is depicting is that of the story of the conversion of Saint Paul. The painting portrays the moment when Saul of Tarsus, on his way to Damascus to annihilate the Christian community there, is struck blind by a brilliant light from the heavens (Wikipedia.org). In the painting Saul has fallen abruptly off his horse and the placement of his are outstretched are to commemorate and signify the crucifixion of Christ. “Sudden shifts from light to dark enhance the drama of the event as the horse and page stand by without understanding the significance of what is happening”, much like a observer not familiar with the story of Saint Paul would (themasterpiececards.com). Caravaggio was trying to convey religious principles to teach Christians about forgiveness and God’s power and highlight the turning point in Saint Paul’s life in which he converts to Christianity.

 The attraction to the painting for me is the use of dramatic lights and darks to create an image that looks as if it is being shown on like a spotlight from heaven. I also appreciated the sense of motion in the painting. It appears as if the viewer of the painting has just walked into a scene that is in progress, not just a stagnate photo to commemorate an event. Overall I think this work is a good reflection of the religious ideas that the Catholic Church was trying to promote after the Council of Trent by promoting Christian ideals of forgiveness, condemning the sinful intentions of Saul, and reaffirming the worth of the Catholic saints.

 Sources

http://www.themasterpiececards.com/caravaggio-conversion-of-st-paul/

http://www.themasterpiececards.com/famous-paintings-reviewed/bid/33056/Art-Paintings-by-Caravaggio-1600-06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversion_on_the_Way_to_Damascus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crucifixion_of_St._Peter_(Caravaggio)

Renaissance Art

Holy Trinity By Masaccio (trinità, 1425) in Florence

Have you ever looked into a painting or drawing and actually felt like you could walk into it? That is the feeling being portrayed when looking into the Holy Trinity by Masaccio. Masaccio is able to recreate the emotions of the time, as well as portray realism and humanism within the image. By combining Brunelleschi’s innovative ideas of linear perspective and Donatello’s art in the illusionistic three-dimensional modeling, Masaccio is able to create an image that when seen in person looks as if there is an actual cavern in the wall (finearttouch.com). This effect is created by placing the vanishing point of the painting at the height of the average man during this time period and is often overlooked when simply viewing a copy of the image (smarthistory.com). Masaccio is the first artist to combine these styles of painting and often credited with introducing humanism to the arts.

During the time period in which this was painting was made the people were not typically depicted as the same size as the holy figures. In this painting all the figures, including the commoners at the bottom, are of equal proportions. This is an excellent example of humanism (smarthistory.com). Humanism is also expressed by the people looking up towards God and Jesus with their eyes open.  It expresses the idea average people can look at the Holy Trinity, including God. This is a direct challenge to the ideas of the Catholic Church during this time period and the start of the ideas for the reformation. Another direct challenge to the church and example of humanism in this painting is the depiction of God as a man.

This painting was of particular interest to myself because of my attraction to the creation of the illusion of three dimensional space on a two dimensional surface. This is one of the very first paintings to combine the use of embrace of the humanism of the current time. The figures also look very real especially seen in the detail of their drapes, and the muscles on the hanging body of Christ. All of these features combine really create the sense humanism and attention to the individual and detail within the image for me. My final point of interest for the image was the quote towards the bottom of the painting on the side of the tomb that reads: As I am now, so you shall be. As you are now, so once was I.

Sources

http://www.finearttouch.com/Masaccio.html

http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/holy-trinity-santa-maria-novella-florence.html

http://mbyl.hubpages.com/hub/the-holy-trinity-by-massacio-masaccio-fresco-florence-paintings-interpretation-analysis-picture-description