Western Art through the Ages
Part 1
Medieval
Renaissance
Baroque (Counter-Reformation)
th
Northern Realism (17 Century)
…with background music by
Johann Sebastian Bach
George Friedrich Handel
Antonio Vivaldi
et.al.
Characteristics
Values
Representative Artists of
Dominant Styles
Caveat:
It is not easy to distinguish one art
period from another. There are
overlapping time frames.
Medieval
Religious
Transcendental
Otherworldly
Medieval
• Byzantine style dominates
• Religious scenes with stiff, one-dimensional
figures associated with the priestly
functions of the church
• Backgrounds generally in gold to provide
illumination in the church
Berlinghieri
Left: St. Francis Altarpiece
Above: Madonna and Child
with Saints and Crucifixion
Paolo Veneziano
The Crucifixion
1349
Sasseta, The Burning of a Heretic 1423-26
Hans Memling
The Man of
Sorrows in the
Arms of the
Virgin
1475
Italian
(Florentine)
Profile
portrait of a
lady
Ca 1475
Transitional piece
into Renaissance
Sebastiaen VRANCX
The Crossing of the Red Sea
c. 1597-1600
Renaissance
Secularism
individualism
virtu (excellence)
balance
order
passivity
calm
Renaissance
• An art of line and edges
• Figures from the Bible, classical history,
and mythology
• Commissioned portraits
• Use of perspective
• Chiaroscuro (light & dark) to achieve
rounded effect
• Secular backgrounds and material splendor
• We’ve talked about this before….
Fra Filippo Lippi
Madonna z
Dzieciątkiem
ca. 1460
Bronzino
Portrait of
Young Man
Baroque
(Counter-Reformation)
sensualism
dynamism
emotion
Baroque
• Art style that is florid, more colorful, richer
in texture and decoration, more light &
shade—apparently less control
• Scenes embody mystery and drama,
violence and spectacle deliberate striving
after effect
• The Catholic Church commissioned artists
to stir religious emotions and win back
defectors
Caravaggio
The
Conversion of
St. Paul
Bernini
The Ecstasy of
St. Theresa
Artemisia
Gentileschi
Judith
beheading
Hologernes
Caravaggio
Boy with a
Basket of
Fruit
c. 1593-94
El Greco
Agonía en
el Jardín.
Northern Realism
17th Century
Genre or everyday scenes exhibit
mathematical and geometric
values of 17th Century science.
Middle-class Dutch patrons
commissioned secular works:
portraits
still-lifes
landscapes
genre painting
Values:
quiet opulence
comfortable domesticity
realism
Jan Vermeer
The Milkmaid
Ca. 1656
Jan
Vermeer
Vue de
Delft
Jan Vermeer
The
Lacemaker
Jan Vermeer
The Artist’s
Studio
Jacob van
RUISDAEL
The Watermill
c.1660
Anthony van
Dyck
Philip
Herbert, 4th
Earl of
Pembroke
c.1634
Anthony van Dyck
Rachel de
Revigny, Countess
of Southampton
c. 1640
Rembrandt
The Anatomy Lesson
of Dr. Tulp
Questions??