Category: 131 R

Alexa Meade

With Performance art on the rise, new and upcoming artists found interest in exploring new mediums and new canvases. One particular segment of performance art grew very popular; body art. The human body was seen as the ideal extreme canvas as a way to create a “configuration between artist & audience, producing a startling new way to experience art” (Body Art Movement Overview) 

However, as performance arts became less credible, and perceived more as a gimmick of self-expression, body art’s reputation came down with it. Many know it now as a simple practice used during birthday parties or sporting events. Alexa Meade, in spite of pursuing body paint, has been able to make a name for herself, and for her medium in the world of fine arts.

Born on the 3rd of September 1986, at the ripe age of 33, Alexa has had many exploits and has been able to reinvent the art genre of body paint. When you take one look at her art, you might be tempted to believe that it is an abstract figurative painting (fig.1). Take a second look, and you might realize that her “paintings” are only but an illusion created on both a live model and the surroundings (fig.2).

Meade has really owned an ability to create the perfect illusion, taking in consideration the light, shadow and background. Her artwork, blueprint (2010), is the perfect representation of her perfected technique that incorporates both deep knowledge of body painting and fine art.

It is her acquisition of both techniques, that she is able to merge ‘serious’/’fine art’ with body painting thus allowing her to be recognized not as a body painter, but as an artist. Her work had led her to collaborate with companies such as Mercedes Benz (fig.4), Toyota (fig.5), Buick (fig.6), Mini Cooper (fig.7) and most recently has been able to partake in the music video of star sensation Ariana Grande’s God is a woman.

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Work Cited:

“Alexa Meade Art.” Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

“Alexa Meade.” Concept Artists, conceptartists.com/artist/alexa-meade-speaker/.

“Alexa Meade.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 7 Sept. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexa_Meade.

“Body Art Movement Overview.” The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/movement/body-art/.

“Hypnotic, Perspective-Bending Body Art Film Brings Painted Portraits to Life.” Designboom, 12 Jan. 2017, www.designboom.com/art/alexa-meade-color-of-reality-body-painting-film-jon-boogz-lil-buck-01-12-2017/.

Images:

Fig.1 “Risen”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

Fig.2 “Behind the scenes of Risen”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

Fig.3 “Blueprint”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

Fig.4 “Coup D`Etat – Mercedes-Benz, 2011”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

Fig.5 “Rosa – Toyota, 2016”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

Fig.6 “Sunset Pack – Buick, 2017”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

Fig.7 “Mini Cooper Car – Mini Cooper”. Alexa Meade Art, alexameade.com/.

David Hockney

Born in Bradford, England in 1937, David Hockney became extremely interested in the arts at a very young age. He especially admired Picasso, Matisse & Fragonard, to which he credits to this day as inspiration in his present artworks. Between 1953 & 1957, Hockney attended Bradford college of arts and continued his studies in 1959 at the Royal College of Arts in London. It was then where Hockney truly began to diversify himself in mediums and subjects, experimenting with both colour and forms thus creating his distinctive style of vivid colours, beautiful scenery and clear shapes (fig.1)

Unlike many artist who’ve had to hustle for the success, or who’ve become successful after their deaths, Hockney rode to fame was quite easy. Immediately, his paintings were very well received and many were even purchased for personal and/or private collections. Some of his early famed work “incorporated his literary leanings and he used fragments of poems and quotations from Walt Whitman” (bibliography).

From beginning to end, his paintings were very important to Hockney on an artistic and personal level. Many of his paintings would surround the topic of homosexuality, even before it was legal. (fig.2)

Another huge inspiration for Hockney was Hollywood. From a young age, due to watching movies frequently with his father, Hockey discovered an admiration and love for the glitz and glamour. From the weather to the beautiful beautiful people, Hockney fell head over heels. After getting a change to visit the place of his trams in 1963, he decided to move there only 3 years later. (fig.3)

Paintings were very important to David Hockney but so was photography. After creating a collage of polaroids in order to sketch out a scenery for his paintings, Hockney soon realized that the placement of the single images to create a new one when places together was an artwork itself (fig.4). Hockney became so interested in his new found medium that he gave up painting altogether that is until the late 1980’s.

Hockney to this day still continues to makes art both focusing on painting and photography. He has begun to implement new technology into his art as a way to make it fresh and “new”. His most expensive painting Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) (fig.5) sold for 90 million dollars and he has been named one of Britain most important and influential artists of the 20th century.

Work Cited:

“David Hockney.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 18 June 2019, www.biography.com/artist/david-hockney.

Phillips. “David Hockney: Paper Pools.” Artsy, 4 Jan. 2017, www.artsy.net/article/phillips-david-hockney-paper-pools.

Tate. “David Hockney – Exhibition at Tate Britain.” Tate, www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/exhibition/david-hockney.

Tate. “Frank Stella Born 1936.” Tate, 1 Jan. 1962, www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/frank-stella-1994.

Tate. “Who Is Frank Stella? – Who Are They?” Tate Kids, www.tate.org.uk/kids/explore/who-is/who-frank-stella.

Zara, Janelle. “Inside the Private World of David Hockney.” Architectural Digest, Architectural Digest, 13 Sept. 2018, www.architecturaldigest.com/story/david-hockney-studio-visit.

Images:

Fig 1. “David Hockney: Gregory in the Pool E (Paper Pool 4) (1978).” Artsy, www.artsy.net/artwork/david-hockney-gregory-in-the-pool-e-paper-pool-4.

Fig 2. “David Hockney: The Beginning (1966): Available for Sale.” Artsy, www.artsy.net/artwork/david-hockney-the-beginning.

Fig 3. Loft, Halina. “The Painting That Started It All: Discover David Hockney’s First Swimming Pool.” Sothebys.com, Sotheby’s, 1 Nov. 2019, www.sothebys.com/en/articles/the-painting-that-started-it-all-discover-david-hockneys-first-swimming-pool.

Fig 4. “David Hockney’s Beautifully Complicated Relationship with Photography.” The Week – All You Need to Know about Everything That Matters, 10 July 2017, theweek.com/captured/708641/david-hockneys-beautifully-complicated-relationship-photography.

Fig 5. Tate. “Frank Stella Born 1936.” Tate, 1 Jan. 1962, www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/frank-stella-1994.

Frank Stella

Frank Stella was bron in Massachusetts in 1936. He attended high school at Phillis Academy and after graduation, went off to Princeton University. While he was studying for a major in history, Stella began to show great interest in art, especially paintings. He would regularly visit art museums in New York and became very fond of the popular minimalistic style of the 1950’s. Such admiration for the movement can be clearly seen in many of his first paintings (fig.1), that some might even call him a minimalism painter.

After finishing his studies, Stella moved to New York to pursue his artistic career. It was not long after did he acheive success. Before the age of 25, some of his paintings had already been displayed in great art galleries and museums, such as the his collection Sixteen Americans (fig.2) which was displayed at MOMA. Around the same time in 1959, Stella joined Leo Castelli’s stable of artists where he produced many of his iconic pieces. One of his most famous was the collection called the Black Paintings (fig.3), which was also bought instantly by the Museum of Modern Art. The collection was the beginning of his style and ability to set “aside illusionistic space for the physicality of the flat surface and deviated from the traditional rectangular shaped canvas” (“Frank Stella.” Guggenheim)

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By 1970-80, Stella was (truly) reputed as a hard-edged painter due to his angular and geometric shapes found in his paintings. Over the years however, he bang to break out of the mold by creating more complex paintings. He would add “curved shapes, Day Glo colours and scrawled paint strokes” (ibid.) (fig.4.) Some of his work took on more sculptural tones swell. For example, he would simply places his paintings on the floor instead of propping them onto a well. He would also use new material such as wood, enabling him to create 3 dimensional pieces (fig.5)

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By 1980-90, Stella became more experimental. In his piece Moby Dick (fig.6), Stella added layers, reliefs, and natural shapes all while keeping the geometrical precision he was well-known for.

Frank Stella is one of the most known living artists of the 20th and 21st century in America. He had a wonderful ability to use his simple, clean and precise geometrical lines to invoke balance, rhythm, as he was a big fan of Jazz, and chaos. He still remains in New York to this day.

Work Cited:

“Frank Stella.” Artnet, www.artnet.com/artists/frank-stella/.

“Frank Stella.” Artsy, www.artsy.net/artist/frank-stella.

“Frank Stella.” Guggenheim, www.guggenheim.org/artwork/artist/frank-stella.

“Frank Stella: MoMA.” The Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/artists/5640.

Tate. “Frank Stella Born 1936.” Tate, 1 Jan. 1962, www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/frank-stella-1994.

Tate. “Who Is Frank Stella? – Who Are They?” Tate Kids, www.tate.org.uk/kids/explore/who-is/who-frank-stella.

Images:

Fig 1. Stella, Frank. “Frank Stella. Ifafa II from the V Series. 1968: MoMA.” The Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/collection/works/74798?artist_id=5640&locale=en&page=1&sov_referrer=artist.

Fig 2. “16 Americans.” The Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/2877.

Fig 3. “Frank Stella. Arbeit Macht Frei from Black Series I. 1967: MoMA.” The Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/collection/works/61219?artist_id=5640&locale=en&page=1&sov_referrer=artist.

Fig 4. “Harran II.” Guggenheim, 5 Nov. 2019, www.guggenheim.org/artwork/4003.

Fig 5. Stella, Frank. “Frank Stella. Ifafa II from the V Series. 1968: MoMA.” The Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/collection/works/74798?artist_id=5640&locale=en&page=1&sov_referrer=artist.

Fig 6. “Masterworks Fine Art Gallery.” Moby Dick from The Waves, Unique Color Trial Proof by Frank Stella on Artnet, Grisebach GmbH, 1 Jan. 1989, www.artnet.com/artists/frank-stella/moby-dick-from-the-waves-unique-color-trial-proof-a-iyVLn8Lab9PSHafuV-hzOw2.

Paul Klee

Paul Klee was born on the 18th of December, 1879. As a young child, Klee found himself fond of drawing landscapes. He later took more interest into art and decided to study the subject in Munich under the teaching of Heinrich Knirr, great painter of genre and portrait, most known as Hitler’s portraitist and Franz Von Stuck, a decorative sculptor and symbolist painter. During his studies, Klee showed great natural talent for draftsmanship (see fig 1).

Soon after graduating, Paul Klee immersed himself in the Der Blaue Reiter group, founded by painter Wassily Kadinsky in hopes to master color. The group focuses primarily on color and its expressive attributes relating to music and spirituality -a genre that Kadinsky would soon master.

Around 1920, both Klee and Kadinsky taught at the Bauhaus school at the Weimar campus as well as the Dessau campus. Klee would become a major leader in color theory, a topic that he had mastered (see fig 2 &3). His lessons on color theory would later greatly impacting artists of the abstract expressionism movement and color field genre.

It was during that time where Klee would immerse himself in various genres. His subject matters would range from surrealist portraits (see fig 4) to geometric abstraction (see fig 5), in particular Orphic Abstraction which he became very fond of. However, as inconsistent his style would be, he always focuses on his composition and color tones.

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He explains  “Spacial art does not begin with a poetic mood or idea, (…). But with construction of one or more figures, with the harmonizing of several colors and tones, or with the devaluation of spatial relationships and so on.” (Paul Klee, Artnet)

By 1933, which Hitler achieving power, he was forced to flee Germany and moved back to Switzerland. Despite his absence in the country, his art was still exhibited as degenerate art in the Entartete Kunst exhibition in 1937. During his time in Switzerland, the quality and quantity of his art rapidly diminished due to a mix of poor finance and health. By 1935, he was diagnosed with scleroderma which led to a complete halt of painting. However, by 1937, his health improved and he was able to get back to work. His last pieces before his death in 1940 were heavily influenced by Pablo Picasso. He had simplified many of the refined details present in his previous pieces (see fig.6)

What makes Paul Klee a fascinating artists and one of the most important of the 20th century was because he did not belong to any movement. But for each one he dabbled in, he would show extreme skill and expertise.He also had a huge effect on our present knowledge of colour theory which is a principal in every illustration, painting and design. 

Work Cited

Franciscono, Marcel. “Paul Klee.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 23 Oct. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Paul-Klee.

“Paul Klee.” 139 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy, www.artsy.net/artist/paul-klee.

“Paul Klee.” Artnet, www.artnet.com/artists/paul-klee/.

“Paul Klee.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 13 Apr. 2019, www.biography.com/artist/paul-klee.

Rewald, Sabine. “Paul Klee (1879–1940).” Metmuseum.org, Oct. 2004, www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/klee/hd_klee.htm.

Tate. “Paul Klee 1879-1940.” Tate, 1 Jan. 1970, www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/paul-klee-1417.

Images:

Fig. 1 “Paul Klee.” Artnet, www.artnet.com/artists/paul-klee/.

Fig 2. Rewald, Sabine. “Paul Klee (1879–1940).” Metmuseum.org, Oct. 2004, www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/klee/hd_klee.htm.

Fig 3. Rewald, Sabine. “Paul Klee (1879–1940).” Metmuseum.org, Oct. 2004, www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/klee/hd_klee.htm.

Fig 4. Rewald, Sabine. “Paul Klee (1879–1940).” Metmuseum.org, Oct. 2004, www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/klee/hd_klee.htm.

Fig 5. “Paul Klee.” Artnet, www.artnet.com/artists/paul-klee/.

Fig 6. “Death and Fire.” Paul-Klee, http://www.paul-klee.org/death-and-fire/

Otto Dix

Born on the 2nd of December 1889, Otto Dix is one of the most infamous German expressionist painters. Otto began his artistic career as an apprentice for Dresden, a decorative artist. Years later, similar to many expressionistic artists, World War deeply effected and disturbed Otto personally and artistically. The Great War for him had resulted in a “cycle of 50 etchings, aquatints, and drypoint(…) “(Otto Dix, 2018)), all of which showcased the brutality, fear and trauma caused by the war. Through his technique of harsh, quick and aggressive lines and exaggerated expressions, seen in pieces such as The War (1923) and Wounded Man (1924), Otto enabled a reaction from the viewers and evoked a bone chilling sensation.

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A peice that exemplifies this as its simplest is Crater Field (1927). By covering his pieces mostly by pure black, with only few pure white spaces glimpsing through, Dix creates an environment that seems to be swallowed by darkness. His simple open blank lines, contrasting strongly with the overpowering black, translates into trenches of human flesh and bones. Although it might not be obvious to some what exactly is represented in the piece, the simple shapes and perfect use of black always translate into a nightmarish sentiments (see fig.3).

Through his many artworks about war, Otto had become part of the Neue Sachlichkeit movement. He had also been assigned professor of the Academy of Dresden. It was during his time there had be become obsessed with the style and technique of the Old Masters. Amongst his favourite were Durer, Hans Green and Lucas Cranach. He adopted the technique of the Renaissance artists by layering tempera on canvas. And instead of painting morbid scenes of WW1 and the aftermath, Otto painted caricatural portraits (see fig.4) .

Shortly after his association to the Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity) movement, Otto art was classified as disgraceful as it went against the rising political party. He was consequently banned from exhibiting, teaching and had 260 removed. By 1939, Otto was sentenced life imprisonment for conspiring a plot against Hitler. Luckily, he was drafted as a guard after serving 6 years of his sentence.

Despite the state of Germany during the Second World War, and his own personal treatment within the country, Otto Dix stayed but his style had drastically changed. He began painting simple landscapes and religious, christian specifically, themes all to stay within the traditional style. This change was also consciously done to stay safe from the strict Nazi Regimen and to be able to continue his practice. Otto Dix later died the 25th of July 1969.

Work Cited:

Orley, Heidi. “Otto Dix.” Moma, 2018, www.moma.org/artists/1559?locale=en&page=&direction=.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Otto Dix.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 21 July 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Otto-Dix.

“Otto Dix.” Artnet, www.artnet.com/artists/otto-dix/?sort=10.

“Otto Dix.” National Gallery of Canada, www.gallery.ca/collection/artist/otto-dix.

Image:

Figure 1. Dix, Otto. The War. 1923. Etching. Moma, Queens.

Figure 2. Otto. Wounded Man. 1924. Etching. Moma, Queens.

Figure 3. Otto. Crater Field. 1927. Etching. Moma, Queens.

Figure 4. Otto. Dr. Mayer-Hermann. 1926. Etching. Moma, Queens.

Figure 5. Otto. Blick auf Öhningen und Stein am Rhein. 1947. Artnet. http://www.artnet.com/artists/otto-dix/blick-auf-öhningen-und-stein-am-rhein-klxnyf_5_RJH6UeN2SxqMA2. Etching. 28 October 2019.

Gustave Moreau was born on the 6th of April 1826 in Paris, France. Although he was born into an artistic family, Moreau only began to show interest in art, especially Byzantine and Early Renaissance, by 1841 during his visit to Italy. He decided to pursue a career in art by studying under Neoclassical painter François-Édouard Pico and soon after at the École des Beaux Arts. It was during that time where he met Theodore Chassériau, a former apprentice of Ingres. Moreau was deeply influenced by Chassériau, especially with his manner of “combining elements of neo-classical and romantic aesthetics.” (Gustave, 2018). Chassériau and Moreau became incredibly close friends, until 1856 where Chassériau died. 

Following the death of his close friend, Moreau travelled around Italy, becoming increasingly inspired by Mannerism and Renaissance painting. It was also during his travels where he befriended Edgar Degas. This also was a crucial moment in the development of his style. In 1864, Moreau produced his most important piece – Oedipus and the Sphinx (1864). This piece displays best his subtle yet effective use of symbolism with the fig tree, the snake and butterfly, preserving the mystery of it all. It also presents the heavy influence his Italy trip had on his style,  tying back to the Renaissance period. Best said by Anna Souter from The Art Story, Moreau perfectly presented 

On the one hand, the Realism of Gustave Courbet, which stressed the depiction of real people and subject matter, and on the other, Naturalism, whose concern with capturing precisely what the eye saw culminated in the formal innovations of Impressionism.

Oedipus and the Sphinx stationed Moreau as a concrete member of the art society. Moreau’s style stayed relatively similar till the late 1870 where he began adopting watercolour and an impressionist brushwork. He also began to center his focus on beautiful woman ornate with vivid jewels whilst still keeping to his symbolic and religious elements. My favorite piece of his exemplifying the change is The Toilette (1885). 

The Toilette showcases his perfected watercolour technique. The background is simply leading the eye to the foreground. A sensational woman decorated with jewelled tapestry. The reds, blues and gold are so saturated and not overused. And even with hush quick brushwork, Moreau is able to create shapes, shadows and extreme detail. It is messy yet no element is lost in the chaos. Moreau honed his craft and balance. 

Like Goya, Moreau’s art is one hard to define. Although his brushwork might reflect one of an impressionist, it is countered with Neoclassical elements and symbolic references. But what makes Moreau special is how he creates art  “where everything in it is elevated, inspiring, moral and beneficent; where all is imaginative and impulsive soaring off into sacred, unknown, mysterious lands.” (The Art of Gustave Moreau).

Cited Work

Figure 2. “ Oedipus and the Sphinx.” Metmuseum.org, www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/21.134.1/.

“The Art of Gustave Moreau.” The Art of Gustave Moreau | Musée Gustave Moreau, en.musee-moreau.fr/art-gustave-moreau.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Gustave Moreau.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 14 Apr. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Gustave-Moreau.

“Gustave Moreau.” Artnet, www.artnet.com/artists/gustave-moreau/.

Figure 1. “Gustave Moreau.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Oct. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Moreau#/media/File:GustaveMoreau02.jpg.

Souter, Anna. “Gustave Moreau Biography, Life & Quotes.” Edited by Greg Thomas, The Art Story, 10 Feb. 2018, www.theartstory.org/artist/moreau-gustave/life-and-legacy/#biography_header.

Figure 3. “The Toilette – Gustave Moreau.” USEUM, useum.org/artwork/The-Toilette-Gustave-Moreau-1885.

John William Waterhouse was born in 1849 in Rome where his father lived as an artist. He soon left back to England in 1854 where his interest in art, specifically drawing took off. By 1870, Warehouse was studying sculpture at the Royal Academy but redirected his studies to painting in 1874. His paintings became an instant hit with the academy and would be exhibited annually at the RAs summer exhibition till 1916. 

Waterhouses’ early years in painting were undoubtedly marked by the academy as he followed a seemingly classical style of painting. He had accuracy in his characters and settings, his use of bright colors was sparse and his themes/subjects were conventional. Such can be seen in his artwork Sleep and His Half Brother Death (1874)(fig.1). 

Despite his academic training and his classical start, Waterhouse began to show interest in more exotic paintings and vibrant colors by 1880. His themes became heavily based on literature and mythology and his figures were more often than not were “ (…) dramatic, beautiful women—damsels in distress, enchantresses, or femmes fatales ” (John William Waterhouse, 2019. , with his favorite being Ophelia (see fig.2, 3, 4). This change marked the beginning of his pre-raphaelite career.

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By the late 1880s, Warehouses began to adopt a unique technique, seen in many artworks of the Impressionist movement, which required quick and light brushstrokes. He paired his unique brushwork created for a blurry effect with one for extreme softness, detail, and accuracy. This enabled him to create beautiful compositions and realistic figures. It also enabled him to separate himself from other Pre-Raphaelite artists such a Millais or Rossetti whose figures approached a drawn and cartoon look (see fig.5).

 In his piece The Lady of Shalott (1888) (fig.6), his sketch-like brush strokes can be admired in the tree, his softness in the figure and his detail in the tapestry. What makes this piece all the more special is his application of complementary colors (green and red) and juxtapositioning of extreme tints and shades. 

Until his death in 1917, his subject matter and style was kept rather unchanged. Some paintings were more abstract than others but Waterhouse never strayed from his principles – women, landscapes, and brushwork.

Work Cited

Blumberg, Naomi. “John William Waterhouse.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/John-William-Waterhouse.

“Waterhouse, John William (1849 – 1917).” The Bloomsbury Guide to Art, edited by Shearer West, Bloomsbury, 1st edition, 1996. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/bga/waterhouse_john_william_1849_1917/0?institutionId=6884. Accessed 11 Oct. 2019.

Wootton, Sarah. “Pre Raphaelite Brotherhood 1848 1853.” Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760-1850, edited by Christopher John Murray, Routledge, 1st edition, 2003. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/routromanticera/pre_raphaelite_brotherhood_1848_1853/0?institutionId=6884. Accessed 11 Oct. 2019.

Images

Figure 1. Warehouse, John William. “Sleep and His Half-Brother Death, 1874.” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Waterhouse-sleep_and_his_half-brother_death-1874.jpg.

Figure 2. Warehouse, John William. “Ophelia,1889.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:JWW_Ophelia_1889.jpg

Figure 3. Warehouse, John William. “Ophelia,1894.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Ophelia_1894.jpg

Figure 4. Warehouse, John William. “Ophelia,1910.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Ophelia_1910.jpg

Figure 5. Rossetti, Dante Gabriel. “Lady Lilith’, 1866-68” Independent UK ”https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/a-z-of-the-pre-raphaelites-rebel-painters-of-a-completely-different-nature-8107060.html

Figure 6. Warehouse, John William. “The Lady of Shalott, 1888.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:John_William_Waterhouse_-_The_Lady_of_Shalott_-_Google_Art_Project_edit.jpg

Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres was born on the 29th of August 1780 in Montauban, France. His first artistic education was received through his father, Jean-Marie Joseph followed by the Fine Arts Academy in Toulouse in 1791. His artistic career escalated quickly after 1797. In the following four years, he had studied in the studio of Dalia, was accepted into the École des Beaux Art and received the award Prix de Rome for his piece The Envoys of Agamemnon (fig.1). His paintings followed the Romanesque style with its vivid emotions and imaginary settings.

Around the beginning of the 19th century, Ingres began to gain a reputation as a portraitist. His style, although still romantic is some perspective, began to reflect the Byzantines era due to harsh frontality found in his paintings. The adoption of a quality found in the Late Gothic period, labeled his art barbaric and archaic. His most criticized work being Napoleon on his Imperial Throne (1806) (fig.2). His front facing portrait, displaying little to no emotion with addition to his position emphasizing power displayed “stylistic references (…) of the past” (Napoleon, 2017). However, such work is now admired for his “uncanny control of delicate yet firm line, (his) inventiveness in posing sitters so as to reveal personality through gestures, and (his) impressive capacity to record an exact likeness”(Encyclopædia Britannica, 2019).

Ingles moved to Rome, Italy where he continued his portrait work. Even with the fall of Napoleon’s Empire, Ingles created small portraits easily sold to English tourists. Suddenly, around the 1818s, Ingles began to resent portrait work and desire to paint great historical moments. Despite his change in subjects, his paintings were still being criticized as gothic. Notably his piece Paolo and Francesca (1819) (fig.3) which displayed extreme stiffness according to the public.

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His reputation turned for better after the 1820s. Ingres has begun to be recognized as a religious painter and his style slowly geared towards an academic style – Neoclassical. He became in favor of drawing over color and committed to idealization. Paintings such as The Vow of Louis XIII (1824) (fig.4) had become sensations in France and revered as exemplary. As a result, Ingles returned to France.

By 1828, Ingles became professor at the École des Beaux-Art. As a result of imposing his own narrative on french painting, he was forced to leave in 1833. The following year, Ingles became director of the Académie de France in Rome. With ever growing popularity in France, Ingles returned once more where he was celebrated by banquets and dinners with the King. 

By the 1840, Ingles had become the “greatest living artist in France”(Encyclopædia Britannica, 2019). Ingles returned to portrait, a style he had once been mocked for, due to prestigious commissions such as Mme.Inès Moitessier (fig.5). He later died in 1867 in Montauban.

Work Cited.

Figure 1

“The Ambassadors of Agamemnon in the Tent of Achilles.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 July 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ambassadors_of_Agamemnon_in_the_tent_of_Achilles#/media/File:The_Envoys_of_Agamemnon_by_Ingres.jpg.

Figure 2

“Napoleon on the Imperial Throne, by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, 1806, oil on canvas.” Bridgeman Images: DeAgostini Library, edited by Bridgeman Images, 1st edition, 2014. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/bridgemandeag/napoleon_on_the_imperial_throne_by_jean_auguste_dominique_ingres_1806_oil_on_canvas/0?institutionId=6884. Accessed 03 Oct. 2019.

Figure 3

Blog-Senirupa. “Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres.” Seni Rupa, 18 Feb. 2013, blog-senirupa.tumblr.com/post/43395248778/jean-auguste-dominique-ingres.

Figure 4

“The Vow of Louis XIII.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Apr. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Vow_of_Louis_XIII#/media/File:Le_Voeu_de_Louis_XIII.jpg.

Figure 5

“Madame Moitessier.” National Gallery Collection, National Gallery, The National Gallery, 1st edition, 2009. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/ng/madame_moitessier/0?institutionId=6884. Accessed 03 Oct. 2019.

Websites:

“Ingres, Jean Auguste Dominique.” The Columbia Encyclopedia, Paul Lagasse, and Columbia University, Columbia University Press, 8th edition, 2018. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/ingres_jean_1780_1867?institutionId=6884. Accessed 03 Oct. 2019.

“Ingres Paintings, Bio, Ideas.” The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/artist/ingres-jean-auguste-dominique/.

Shelton, Andrew Carrington. “J.-A.-D. Ingres.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 25 Aug. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/J-A-D-Ingres.

Young, Rebecca. “Napoleon I on His Imperial Throne.” Napoleon.org, Jan. 2017, www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/paintings/napoleon-i-on-his-imperial-throne/.

Nicolas Poussin was a french painter and draftsman born in 1594 in Normandy, France. As most other well known artist, Poussin showed an interest and talent for drawing at a young age. He first studied under Quentin Varin, but soon left for Paris in 1912 where he studied architecture and anatomy. It was during his time in the city of lights where he was introduced to roman engravings of the Renaissance period which influences him to visit Rome twice between 1619 and 1922 before moving permanently there in 1624.

He soon began to work commission most notably for the Jesuits and Giabattista Manno, an italian poet. Poussins work regularly concerned the bible and mythology. His style resembled immensely Romantisms by his representation of  intense emotions. In addition, he painted with vivid color palettes and loose compositions which was a direct result of his admiration for venetian painters such as Titian. However, his style changed suddenly in the late 1930. Rebuking Venetian paintings intense colors and seductivity, he took on “severe and cerebral style that emphasized clearly delineated and modelled forms and cold, pure colours.” (Encyclopedia of Britannica, 2019). Such can be notably seen in his painting Landscape with Saint John on Patmos (see fig.1) in contrast with one of his early works (see fig.2).

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With time, his reputation grew and commissions from prestigious clients came in. The Cardinal Richelieu and the king of Spain Philip IV to name a couple and later in 1639, Louis XIII of France. Poussin returned to France to work under his majesty until 1642 where he left back to Rome. His days in France we recalled to be some of his worst times. His creative freedom and process had been completely halted as many of his works had to be done by assistants. 

Once back in Rome, Poussin continued to paint, each artwork more impressive than the previous. In 1647, Poussin defined a theoretical principle to painting – The Theory of Modes. He described that each aspect of the painting had to be chosen carefully in order to provoke an emotion from the viewer, appropriate to the paintings subject. This theory has been used over decades, most evidently in the Abstract movement which fundamentals are based on emotional response.   

In his final years, Poussin refined his style both taking from Venetian and Classical painting (see fig.3). He had an ability to harmonise his colors and compositions to create simple yet dramatic pieces. His artworks had become effective and so polished, little had to be criticized about his work. Sadly, Nicolas had become increasingly ill in the past years and died in 1665 in Rome, Italy.

Work Cited:

Images:

Figure 2. 
Poussin, Nicolas. “L’Assomption De La Vierge.” Libération, next.liberation.fr/culture/2015/04/17/poussin-le-gout-de-grace_1246747.

Figure 1.  Poussin, Nicolas. “Landscape with Saint John on Patmos.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landscape_with_Saint_John_on_Patmos#/media/File:Nicolas_Poussin_-Landscape_with_Saint_John_on_Patmos-_Google_Art_Project.jpg

Figure 3.  Poussin, Nicolas. “The Holy Family on the Steps.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc, 28 May 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolas-Poussin/Conversion-to-Classicism.

Websites

“Poussin, Nicolas.” The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide, edited by Helicon, 2018. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/poussin_nicolas_1594_1665?institutionId=6884. Accessed 02 Oct. 2019.Verdi, Richard. “Nicolas Poussin.”

Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc, 28 May 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Nicolas-Poussin/Conversion-to-Classicism.

Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola (ca. 1503-1540), better known as Parmigianino, was one of the leading painters and etchers of the Mannerism period. Born in Parma, hence his name, he was raised by his mother and two of his uncle, both of them artisanal painters. From an early age, Parmigianino was trained to draw and paint by his teachers and uncles with his earliest work, The Baptism of Christ (ca.1519), figure 1, being painted between the ages of 14 and 16. 

Later in his youth, Parmigianino worked aside another great High renaissance and mannerism artist, Antonio da Correggio. Although Parmigianino never became his apprentice, he took great influence from him in the softness and composition of his pieces. Notably, Michelangelo and Raphael additionally were great influences of his work.

In 1523, the 21 year old artist moved to Rome where he continued to paint. The sack of the city in 1527, forced Parmigianino to leave Rome and head to Bologna. He returned to Parma 4 years later. Near the end of his life, Parmigianino was imprisoned for missing a commissions deadline from the church and died a year after bail in ca.1540 at the age of 37.

Although living a short life, Parmagianinos legacy and style is still one of the most recognized of the Mannerism period. His artworks expressed great sensuality with his ability to create softness and rhythmic beauty. He painted figures with exaggerated height and slender, a quality particular to Mannerism style. Such characteristics are notably seen in his painting Madonna & child with Saint-John the Baptist and Jerome (1524), figure 2, with Madonna adorning a long neck and slender fingers. Such treatment of “affectation and sophistication” (Gombrich, 1995, p.364) to the “sacred subject”(ibid.) became nearly offensive. This particular piece also demonstrates his mastery in composition with the angels densifies into a corner and shortened creating contrast with the beautifully elongated Madonna thus making her the central focus of the peace.

Another great painting was his Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (ca.1524), figure 3. This artwork demonstrates his rigorous exploration and examination of various perspectives and “unusual spatial relations within the frame.”₅. His ability to create congruous compositions was well characterized in this self-portrait as well with elements such as his impersonal face expression with the irregular and unstable perspective. These conflicting components purposely counterbalanced each other in such a way creating in other words, harmony.

His etching were equally masterfully done with the same attention to detail, composition and mannerist qualities. Some of his most notable works are The Lovers (ca. 1527-30), figure 4, Youth & Old men (ca. 1518-40), figure 5, and The Annunciation (early 16th century), figure 6.

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Parmigianino was a master of demonstrating both quality and style without one inhibiting the other. Granted he was gifted from an early age, it was his passion and drive to be the best that led him to become an artist still praised to this day.

Work Cited.

Online Encyclopedia

“Parmigianino, (Girolamo) Francesco (Maria Mazzola) (1503–1540).” The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide, edited by Helicon, 2018. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/parmigianino_1503_1540?institutionId=6884. Accessed 24 Sep. 2019.

“Parmigianino.” The Columbia Encyclopedia, Paul Lagasse, and Columbia University, Columbia University Press, 8th edition, 2018. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/columency/parmigianino/0?institutionId=6884. Accessed 24 Sep. 2019.

“Parmigianino.” Britannica Concise Encyclopedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Britannica Digital Learning, 2017. Credo Reference, https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/ebconcise/parmigianino/0?institutionId=6884. Accessed 24 Sep. 2019.

Website

“Parmigianino Paintings, Bio, Ideas.” The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/artist/parmigianino/.

Images 

Parmigianino. “Baptism of Christ.” USEUM Beta, ca.1519, useum.org/artwork/Untitled-Parmigianino-1519.

Parmigianino. “Madonna with the Long Neck.” Artble, 1534, www.artble.com/artists/parmigianino/paintings/madonna_with_the_long_neck.

Parmigianino. “Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror.” Khan Academy, ca.1524, www.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/high-ren-florence-rome/pontormo/v/parmigianino-self-portrait-in-a-convex-mirror-1523-24.

Parmigianino. “The Annunciation.” THE MET, www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/391602.

Parmigianino. “The Lovers.” THE MET, ca.1527-30, www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/26.70.3[102]/.

Parmigianino. “Youth & Old Men.” Spencer Alley, spenceralley.blogspot.com/2016/10/etchings-by-parmigianino-1520s-and-1530s.html.