Neoclassical Era Art

The Book

Neoclassical Era Art • Moved away from excesses of

Baroque Era and focused again on Greek and Roman ideals.

• Neo- classical— “new” classics

• Artists to know:–Jaques Louis David–Thomas Jefferson

Jacques Louis David Bio• Attention to detail • Clean-edge painting, very dramatic • Focused on great men and women, like

Napoleon and Socrates• Realistic but muted colors• David saw the art of antiquity as surpassing

anything done in his own age, and he therefore chose subjects from the past.

• He has been compared with Michelangelo, the painter of the Sistine Chapel. He disdained the excesses of the Baroque Era, such as the gilded walls, lace, and wigs.

• He preferred substance over style.

Oath of the Horatii

Jacques Louis David• First painter to use Neoclassical

style, with painting, Oath of Horatii.

• Oath probably most famous Neoclassical work

• Extolled antique virtues of stoicism, masculinity and patriotism.

Death of Socrates

Death of Socrates Explained

• You can see David’s style in his Death of Socrates.

• Look at the plain costumes, the simple gestures, the accurate but not overly bright colors, the emphasis on the central character, Socrates, who is about to take poison. Notice that the character is making a statement to his students even at the moment of his death (a true account, by the way, according to those who were there), showing David's belief in the importance of performing great deeds.

– SUMMARY: David chose to use simple scenes and accurate colors to draw attention to the content, which was usually centered around duty, not to draw attention to the artist or his style.

Thomas Jefferson Bio• Renaissance Man

– Politician– second president of the United States– Writer—The Declaration of Independence– Scholar– Founded the University of Virginia– Architect

• Designed buildings, blending qualities from several cultures to illustrate that America itself was a melting pot of cultures.

• Over the whole structure, Jefferson would create a feeling of symmetry, representative of The Greeks and Romans who Neoclassicists imitated.

• Fine materials were called for, such as marble, hardwood floors with intricate inlay patterns, and so forth.

• SUMMARY: Thomas Jefferson used structural symmetry in his architectural designs, blending elements from several cultures into a balanced whole.

Jefferson, the Architect• No formal architectural training• Self-taught

• Designed many of his civic buildings in a neo-Roman style

• Worked with Benjamin H. Latrobe on the Capitol design

Jefferson’s (& Latrobe’s) Capitol Building

Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello

Monticello• Perfect representation of both a

Jefferson-designed building and the Neoclassical architectural ideals:– Pillars like the ancient Greeks–dome like the Islamic cultures (and

Romans)–square walls similar to Romanesque

architecture (Medieval Era)–High, thin French windows (from

Gothic Era)

Additional Info• Overview of Neo-Classicism• Art produced in Europe and

North America from the mid-18c to the early 19c.

• More than just an antique revival a reaction against the surviving Baroque & Rococo styles.

S Linked to contemporary political events:Revolutions established republics in France and in America. [Neo-Classicism was adapted as the official art style].

S Association with the democracy of Greece and the republicanism of Rome.

S Napoleon used the style for propaganda.

Origins ofNeo-Classical

Art

1. Excavations of the Ruins of Italian Cities

Herculaneum in 1738.

Pompeii in 1748.

2. Publication of Books on Antiquity

James Stuart & Nicholas RevertAntiquities in Athens: 1762-1816.

3. Arrival of the Elgin Marbles

Thomas Bruce,7th Lord of ElginBritish Museum,

1806From the top façade of

the Parthenon in Athens.

Characteristics of Neo-Classicism$ Return to the perceived “purity” of the

arts of Rome.$ Model the “ideal” of the ancient Greek

arts and, to a lesser, extent, 16c Renaissance classicism.

$ A conviction that there is a permanent, universal way things are (and should be), which obviously entails fundamental political and ethical commitments.

$ Sometimes considered anti-modern or even reactionary.

Neo-ClassicalArchitecture

Robert Adam

Scottish architect & designer Syon House

1760s

Syon HouseThe Red Salon

Claude Nicholas Ledoux

$ Designed a pavilion in 1771 for the Comtesse du Barry at Louveciennes.

$ Designed a series of city gates for Paris (1785-1789).

Claude Nicholas Ledoux

Rotunde de la Villette, Paris

John Wood

“The Royal Crescent [Circus]” at Bath, England (1754).

The “Empire Style”: Charles Percier & Pierre François Léonard Fontaine $ Napoleon’s

official architects.

$ They remade Paris in the intimidating opulence of Roman imperial architectural style.

Greek-Inspired Architecture

Bank of England Rotunda

Sir John Soane, 1796 British Museum Portico

Sir Robert Smirke,1823-1847

The “Federal Style” in America$ 1780 – 1820.

$ Thomas Jefferson’s influence.

Monticello, VA

University of VA

U. S. Capitol

The “Greek Revival Style” in America

Second Bank of the USPhiladelphia, 1824

Neo-ClassicalPainting

“Parnassus”Anton Raphael Mengs, 1761

Mengs was the leading artist of early Neo-Classicism.

“The Oath of Brutus”Gavin Hamilton, 1767

The oath was sworn as a promise of individual revenge against a corrupt monarchy.

“The Death of Socrates”Jacques-Louis David, 1787

The death of Socrates was a symbol of republican virtue.

“The Oath of the Horatii”Jacques-Louis David, 1784

A depiction of dutiful patriotism.

“The Consecration of Napoleon & Josephine”

Jacques-Louis David, 1805-1807

A very different theme:The celebration of worldly splendor and power.

“The Apotheosis of Homer”Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres,

1827

This assembly of great artists and writers of all ages gathered to honor the ancient Greek poet before a

classical temple.

“Romulus—Victory over Acron”

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, 1812

Painted for Napoleon’s palace in Rome.

“The Sabine Women”Jean Auguste Ingres, 1799

Neo-ClassicalSculpture

Neo-Classical Sculpture$ Profoundly influenced by ancient art

since the Renaissance.$ Neo-Classical sculptors avoided the

dramatic twisting poses and colored marble surfaces characteristic of late Baroque and Rococo sculpture.

$ They preferred:S Crisp contours.S A noble stillness.S Idealized white marble forms.

Antonio Canova

“Apollo Crowning Himself,” 1781 “Perseus with the Head of

Medusa,” 1804-1806

Antonio Canova

“Paulina Bonaparte,” 1808

“Hercules”

Bertel Thorvaldsen

“Jason,”1803-1823 “Adonis,” 1808-

1832