THREE OPPOSING VIEWS
Late 18th Century
Three very different styles dominated:
Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Realism
Neoclassicism
Romanticism
Realism
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France
Ruled by Dictator, Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon favoured Antiquity over Baroque & Rococo’s frivolous and
exuberant style
Developed out of a reaction against Baroque and Rococo
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Against restrictions of Classicism in Neoclassicism.
Artists who rejected these two movements focused on the direct experience
and painted what they saw
Neoclassicism
Intellectualism
Academies
No brushstrokes
Focus on Classicism
Focus on the past
Restrictions by Napoleon
Admired Raphael
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Romanticism
Emotionalism
Rebellion
Painterly and expression
Focus on Middle Ages’ Romances
Focus on the present and imagination
Individualism
Admired Rubens and Rembrandt
ROMANTICISM
Name comes from medieval stories called Romances, such as King Arthur and the Knights of the
Round Table.
ARTIST
Francisco Goya (1746-1828)
Spain
Appointed painter to King Charles IV of Spain
Severe illness 1786 became deaf and lived in isolation
Third of May, 1808, 1814 p. 391
Story
 Slaughtering of Spanish Rebels by French soldiers
 It was painted in 1814 after the French left Spain
 It is a social protest painting against the inhumane treatment of the Spanish by Napoleon’s
French.
 The man who is lit by the brightest light wears yellow pants as a symbol of a warning
 While the other Spaniards crouch over in fear and pain, he has his arms open in acceptance
of his death… he will not surrender to the French.
Characteristics
 Not allegorical like Neoclassical paintings
 Emotional portrayal of the event as Goya remembers it
THREE OPPOSING VIEWS
Late 18th Century
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Depicts real and dark emotions
Painterly brushstrokes
ARTIST
Theodore Géricault (1746-1828)
Influenced by Michelangelo’s muscular and dynamic figures
Interested in humanity’s struggle with nature. Very romantic.
Raft of the “Medusa” 1818-19 p. 392
Story
 Government ship, the Medusa, was wrecked on the way from France to Senegal in 1816.
 Captain abandoned ship first, with his crew.
 149 passengers were crowded onto a raft to be towed by the life boat.
 The raft was cut adrift by the captain
 The captain and crew made it safely to shore and made it seem as though they were heroes
for trying to save their passengers but were unable to do so.
 After suffering extreme starvation and thirst only 15 survivors made it to the African coast.
 It was a national scandal
Géricault interviewed the survivors, read newspaper accounts, made sketches of corpses in the
morgue and even tied himself to the mast of a small boat during a storm so that he could feel the
movement of the waves and wind.
Composition
 Two pyramids
o Pyramid 1 – one of dead, dying and tragic figures
o Pyramid 2 – hope and struggle: several men wave clothing trying to signal a distant ship,
Argos, which eventually brings them to safety.
 Storm clouds and high seas add to the feeling of futility and constant hope in France’s first great
Romantic painting
 Careful composition created using line that connects each figure to the next to continue moving
the viewer’s eye within the painting.
ARTIST
Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863)
 Gericault died at the age of 33 years and the Romantic movement passed to Delacroix.
 Theatrical: He places two dead figures in the foreground and blended allegory with reality.
Liberty Leading the People 1830 p. 393
Story
 Inspired by the 1830 insurrection in Paris
 Allegorical figure of Liberty holds the French flag as she leads the revolutionaries over the
street barricades in Paris.
Both – glorifies the cause of the victorious revolt AND shows the horror and violence of fighting
THREE OPPOSING VIEWS
Late 18th Century
REALISM
Belief: only what you can see and experience is worthy subject matter
Natural and realistic representation
Not favoured by the public because they glorified the working class
ARTIST
Gustave Courbet (1819-1877)
 Most effective spokesperson of Realism
 Said “the art of painting should consist only in the representation of objects which the artist
can see and touch”
Characteristics:
Painted events or things that he had seen of knew well
Associated self with the working class and their plight for rights in French society.
Burial at Ornans, 1849-1850 p. 405
Not an aristocratic funeral
No souls being transported to heaven like El Greco’s Burial of Count Orgaz
Ordinary people are doing ordinary things with real sombre feelings.
The dog adds to the everyday, common feeling
ARTIST
Jean François Millet (1814-1875)
Born of a peasant family
Characteristics
Painted the common activities of sowing seed, harvesting, plowing and gleaning.
His goal was to present the farm workers as dignified people.
The Gleaners 1857 p. 403
 Simple workers and their daily task of gleaning
 Realism in colour, form and simplicity
 Does not glorify or embellish the peasant women, just shows their hard work
 His work had a direct influence on Van Gogh