AS Historical Practice By Charlie Hopgood The meanings and messages behind pieces of artwork
Hyacinthe Rigaud He was a French painter born in 1659 and later died in 1743. his particular style was that in the baroque. During his life time he was considered the most successful painter during this time period showing his talent through the extremely realistic paintings he did. Often using a combination of colours and tones to create realistic skin and lighting that looked so realistic with perfect reflections and highlights coming off the objects in the image. In 1688 he received his first royal commission for his work as his pieces were very popular amongst the wealthier classes of Paris’ society. His main strengths were with formal portraiture which he excelled in when he painted a picture of louis XIV in his robes showing his power and strength. During the 17th century baroque painting was a very popular style amongst painters. Within this style the artists often used many techniques such as exaggerating the movement within the painting. This was to intensify and make the painting more dramatic to the client or viewer. This style often was also used to make the subject within the photo look heroic and show power and tell the people looking at the painting how important they are.
Image analysis This portrait of a man named Antoine Paris, painted in 1724 its an oil canvas painting painted by a French artist called Hyacinthe Rigaud a baroque painter. In the image the man is sat up straight with a posh and formal posture. This shows that he has a high education and looks to present themselves well. The background is also very dim with the lit up subject in the foreground. This draws the focus of the viewer to the foreground rather than the distracting background. Here in the background you can see shelves of books, this suggests that the subject is being painted in what looks like a library. This also tells us that the subject is well educated and informed of the world. These two segments of this painting both show foreign objects. These being a pillar on the left and a vase on the upper right. This shows that the man in the photo has done allot of travelling and brought back souvenir’s from their travels which was also known as the Grand Tour. The trend started around 1660 when young men or women would go on a trip around Europe. However was only for the upper class society or those with a wealthy background The subject of the photo is also looking away from the viewer which shows that we are unimportant and that he has better things to look at. Extra fat under the chin also suggests that the man I also able to afford and spoil himself with food which only people with high status’s could afford to do. You can also see that the man is wearing a wig . During the 18th century powdered wigs were important for full dress occasions and also showed off the
Here you can see the only light illuminating the picture coming from the side of the painting from a window. The subject in the photo also has very pale skin which suggests that he doesn't do any manual labour and works inside rather than in the sun outside all day long like lower class citizens. His rosy cheeks also suggest this as they don’t get that much sun. however this may have just been a fashion trend in that specific time period such as the The man wigs in the image is also wearing a powdered rich material like silk or a velvet fabric that was most likely imported from abroad. This told any one who saw this man that he was very rich and could afford many luxuries. The colours in the background and foreground are very similar in shade and tone. This helps make certain features of the image stand out more like the paleness of the skin and the gold and black velvet colours in the blanket that is covering the subject. In this segment the man in the photo is sat and resting on decorative gold plated pieces of furniture. This shows that he has the money to spend on objects that are there to show other people how wealthy they are. The man is also sat on a large gold and red chair with a design sort of like a throne. This tells us that he could have been an important man and that the chair shows his rank in society. Also other than its functionality of being a chair it could also be seen as a simple of how wealthy this man is.
The death Of Marat This painting was painted by an artist called Jacqueslouis David. He was apart of a radical group called the Jacobins who were political groups formed before the French revolution. The story behind this painting was about a man named Marat who was 50 made a list’s of people who needed to be executed. However on the 13th July 1793 a woman called Charlotte Corday murdered him and claimed “I killed one man to save 100,000.” Here in the image you can see a knife laying on the floor and Marat with a stab wound on his upper right side of the chest below the collar bone. This tells us that he was murdered and in a way that may have caused a quick death. The knife on the floor may also suggest that the murderer could have made a quick getaway and left the evidence behind or didn’t careofwhether they got In this segment the image you caught. can see that Marat is in a bath and has a head scarf on. This was because he had a bad skin condition that he got earlier on in life that caused itchiness and dry skin. This means he would vary rarely leave the room and would do all his work at home as you can see Hereinyou thecan image. see a letter written in French that looks like its addressed to Marat. This may be a letter from a loved one or someone who isn’t pleased with what he does. This shows that not everyone may have agreed with his rulings of who should be executed and what he was doing wrong Also the factwas that the image shows Marat still holding the quill in his hand after he is dead tells us that he didn't see his death coming and that he had an abrupt end.
The way that David has portrayed Marat's dead limp arm can be compared to the work of an Italian painter called Caravaggio. With David being a Jacobin this could have been an intentional strike towards the religious community as Caravaggio painted a picture depicting Jesus during the deposition where a group of people held the dead Jesus after he had been crucified In the image you can see that there is an illuminating light coming from the right side of the painting. This makes it so that all the details of the dead man are in sight. The shadow on his torso also makes the image more dramatic as he is slumped over like he's just fallen asleep. David has also used a black background in this picture which complements the main subject really well as the viewers attention is drawn to the foreground of the image and makes you look more in depth into the painting rather than getting distracted by a busy background . However this black background may also suggest that there wasn't much more to Marat's life than
The Death of Marat Animation Walkthrough Introduction For this I will be making an animated painting by Jacques-louis David. What I will be doing is making multiple parts of the image move from one spot of the photo to the other with a smooth transition between them. I am planning to make both his arms move and maybe make him move his head from side to side.
1. First of all I had to get the painting of the death of Marat and copy and paste it into a new Photoshop document. It also had to be re sized so that the image was big enough to see and work on
2.Next I had to use the quick selection tool to highlight the main arm holding the letter. Then I had to cut via copy to transfer just the selected part onto a new separate layer. This was repeated for both arms and the head
3. Next a clone tool was needed to cover up the empty background on the first layer. This allowed the image to look some what in a way normal and blend in as if his arm wasn’t there in the first place. Again this was repeated for the head and the other arm.
4. Now having the background filled I made each of the three separate layers smart objects which then allowed me to make a timeline. For this all I needed to do was set the starting transition point in the original position of the arm. I then needed to move the arm to the end location and set a transition marker again and repeat for each of the smart objects. This is the final time line layout with all the smart objects set with there transition positions. When I ran the timeline to see whether everything worked I made a few changes with the transitions. To start I brought everything closer to the start which allowed the animation to play through quicker. After that I added extra transitions inbetween the start and the finish. This allowed the part to move smoother and not rotate over other moving parts
The Execution of Lady Jane Grey
This is a 1833 painting painted by a man named Paul Delaroche and was painted in France. Its a large scale oil on canvas painting and is classified as historical art and this is the reason for its large size. Delaroche had originally created it to be shown in the French salon which was an exhibition for entertainment during the 19th century. Although this painting was painted in 1833 it is actually a painting depicting the execution of lady jane grey which occurred during the 16th century. During this time when Henry VIII was ruling and he had married and divorced many women there was a debate of who would take the crown after his oldest successor Edward who was the son of henry and jane Seymour. After he died England had to made the crucial decision of who should get the crown between henrys sister jane grey and Mary the daughter of henrys first wife Catherine of Aragon. The public had chose Janae who ruled for a full 9 days before she was charged with treason and executed in the green tower on the 12th Febury 1554 when she was at the age of 16 allowing Mary to finally take the throne that she always wanted.
Paul Delaroche Paul Delaroche was born in 1797 on the 17th July in Paris and became a professor in the École Nationale SupÊrieure des Beaux-Arts. He was a French historical painter who became a big success with his intricate and detailed oil paintings of his subjects that almost looked life like with next to no sign of any bush strokes which gave the subjects in the painting a realistic and flesh like tone. This was because the surface in which he painted his pictures was hard, firm and smooth which gave all his work the best possible finish. This will have aided him in making such realistic tones within skin colour and material as colours could blend much easier. The use of oil paints also would ,have aloud him to make layers of paint giving a more 3D and life like effect. Due to engraved reproductions of his work in the 1830’s when he was learning to reproduce his historical paintings, it was able to become more popular and familiar as it became a big part of decoration for peoples homes during the time in which he perused his talent for the arts. When studying at a fine arts academy he would often choose subjects that had something to do with stories of kings and queens showing his interests in history at the very beginnings. The emotions that Delaroche portrayed within his paintings are classified as romanticism but with the classical style are still considered paintings of the ,historical sort as he predicted important events within time. His work could also be classified as neoclassicism meaning the revival of classical artwork.
This image is splint into 3 segments with different people in the fore ground, mid and background. To give the image a greater depth of field and give the viewer multiple things to look at. With Delaroche's paintings often being classified as romanticism these different people in different spots mall show emotions that give the picture more meaning. Here on the left of the painting you can see two women weeping and grieving for what is presumable their friend jane grey being executed. This shows that even though people were accusing grey of treason for being on the thrown, she was still loved by the people.
To the right of the photo you can se the executioner standing with a classical contrapposto stance. At the time this type of stance was often used within painting and sculptures to show power or the person is a heroic figure. This could be seen as the executioner being the hero as he's killing a person that has supposedly caused harm and committed treason.
intention Following the theme of betrayal I will be looking at more images that show people being bitrade by the ones who are supposed to look after them. In this case it is generally the people of the higher class that think they are above the common people.
The raft of the medusa This was painted by an artist named Gericault and was painted from 1818-19. it took a year because it was such a large life size painting that was the size of a room. To paint such a large piece being 492 x 716cm within a year the artist had to shave all his hair so that he would force himself to stay in his studio and paint as much as he could. Was relating to a ship called the medusa which sank 3 years before this painting was created. The painting trying to reclaim land however the ship ran aground in the open ocean so the captain and important people took the life boats forcing the rest of the soldiers and the settlers to build a raft out of the ships timber. Originally the plan was to tow the raft to using the life boats but when the captain realised it was slowing the life boats the line was cut and they were forced to survive for themselves. This caused them to turn on one another and become cannibals as they all fight to survive. A message within the painting is that you shouldn’t trust the king as the captain of this ship was appointed by the king but instead abandoned the ship and crew. This shows the corruption of the king within this romanticism piece and shows anarchy. It showed at the time that everyone is apart of the ship of medusa as long as the king is in power
Here in the far distance there is a faint outline of a ship that would eventually save these people and is the reason for their frantic waving. However what this part of the photo is trying to portray ;is the false hope within life much like the people in the photo who can see a ship but wont be rescued for hours to come
Here you can see a scruffy man resting on a dead body. By his posture and general facial expressions you can tell that he has lost all hope of rescue. This can be related to the context of this image in that this man has realised that even if they do get saved they will have to return to every day life where the monarchy is in control even though the reason for him being in that situation in the first place is because of the people who are being controlled by the monarchy. This may also tell us that on the outside wor5ld the same sort of thing is happening where the people in control are leaving anarchy to spread and spiral out of control and don’t treat the common people as equal to themselves or with kindness.
Here you can see a pile of desperate people trying to wave down a distant ship to rescue them. Within this segment of the photo it shows anarchy and chaos as people selfishly try to help themselves instead of one another. This is shown by the people piling on bodies whether their dead or alive just so they can be seen by a passing ship. This can be seen as a message to people to help one another for a greater chance of success instead of being selfish and trying on your own which would lead to no where other than pain and failure.
In the painting he has used a French officers uniform half on the raft. This is to show that the crown and the captain is to blame and that they are the cause for all these people turning against one another. This suggests that the crown is the cause of anarchy within society and they do nothing to correct it and leave it to escalate and effect all the lower class people leaving the higher class perfectly safe and un effected.
Here you can see an axe in the centre of the selection that I have zoomed in on. However where it would have been used to cut the wood from the ship to build a raft it function has been altered as there are signs of blood on the blade. This suggests that it is now a murder weapon and was used to kill fellow comrades whether it was for no reason or for cannibalistic measures. Either way it further shows how in desperate needs you should help one another instead of turn against one another as when one person becomes selfish and in need and doesn’t know what to do they instantly become a danger to the rest. Much like the captain of the ship who became so desperate to survive that he cut the raft loose so he could get back to civilisation
Liberty leading the people This is a painting painted by a French artist called Eugène Delacroix portraying the July revelation of 1830 in France. Delacroix was one of the leading romanticism artists of his era. Trained by a neo classical artist called Pierre GuÊrin from 1816 to 1823 he gained allot of skills that perfected his work in way that allowed him to produce stunning pieces of work that were very dramatic and realistic. After the revelation of 1830 he received allot of commissions from wealthy people such as LouisPhilippe and Napoleon III who both believed his work to be great master pieces. During the 1830 revelation there was two main factors that caused the people to start an uprising. The first being that louis and Charles ruled in France due to hereditary right with the crown being passed drown through the family after the monarch died. The second being that louis XVIII knew that there was still signs of people wanting a fair democracy letting them vote for who they wanted to rule. He was forced to create and sign the French constitution, also known as the La Charte. This made new laws highlighting equality, protection of private property and other agreements and laws that benefitted the French people after the revelation.
The revelation first started in July by all the shop owners closing their own shops in protest. As night approached people started to fight in the streets. Parisians were the aggressors in this fight throwing any hard objects they could find such as paving slabs and roof tiles from their upper windows at people below. 21 people were killed that night and after all the street lights were broken the riot came to an end. However the fighting began again the next morning. The people started to sign a petition for the king to withdraw the ordinances, Charles X decided he would negotiate if the people would lower their weapons knowing that he wouldn’t follow their terms and would send in troops when the people were unarmed. However by the third night the people became more organised and heavily armed blocking off troops with barricades made out of materials from around them which allowed them to eventually overthrow the government and take control.
Here you can see a man in a uniform lying dead on the ground. This suggests that he is a soldier of the monarchy. It also sends us a message that when the people are united and really want something you should listen to them as there is nothing stopping them as together they are unbeatable and their determination alone puts them aside from the soldiers. The main focus of the image is a woman holding a flag and a musket in each hand. The flag is the tri coloured flag of the revelation which later led to be the permanent flag of France showing their freedom and democracy. The woman can be depicted as a goddess like figure leading the people over dead bodies to their victory.
In the image you can see that all the people are heavily armed to the teeth with weapons ranging from guns to swords. Whether they were looted off the soldiers or random weapons that they had found lying around. This portrays the anger within the people as them being heavily armed shows that this is a serious matter and they wont let anything get in the way of them making one another's lives better. It also shows that when people unite with one another anything is possible and the desired outcome is more possible working together
The woman is also standing bare foot on top of dead bodies that the people have killed during their uprising for equality and a fair democracy. This acts as her pedestal for victory showing that they have already conquered most of their enemy and that nothing else can get in their way.
Here you can see a man, presumable a soldier dead and stripped of everything he owns. This gets the message across that this is how the people felt with the way that the crown and who inherited the throne worked. They felt stripped of all their rights and felt un equal to one another as the wealthy people lived a luxurious life as the commoners had to work and starve just to survive. This is the main thing that the French people were trying to achieve during the revelation by overthrowing the government. By doing so the king was made to sign paper work that introduced new laws and terms in return for him being reinstated and being
The Third of May 1808 Painted by a man named Goya in 1814 this painting is a large scale 345x266cm oil on canvas painting that depicts the invasion of Napoleon’s troops in France. This started when the French and the Spanish armies joined together in 1807 to invade and occupy Portugal. However Napoleon turned on the French and decided to invade them in 1808. during this time the British and Portuguese troops had secured Portugal and turned it into their base of operations whilst they combatted the French and sent whatever supplies they could spare to the Spanish. The reason in which he chose to take over the Spanish after sending troops to Portugal was because he wanted his own brother joseph to get the throne and rule instead of their existing monarch. Although napoleon could foresee that the Spanish were going to start an, he didn’t realize how powerful they would become thinking he would be able to control them when he couldn’t. on may 1808 there was a mass revolt against the French reign which began in Madrid but eventually spread to the point where it was happening all over Spain. This was known as the guerrilla war which lasted until 1814
Goya ROMANTICISM
In this segment of the image you can see a man who is bleeding out on the floor. The way in which he is lying goes from big to small in the shape of a regular triangle. This gives the image some depth and gives a perspective of how many people there are in the image and the sort of area they were killed. It shows that they are in a large open area that gives them no where to run if they manage to escape.
Here in the image you can see a man dressed in a white top and yellow trousers. The white top compared to the dull colours of the other men can suggest that this man is pure and innocent and is being convicted of a crime that they haven’t committed. He is also said to have red dots in the centre of his palms. This was believed to be a sign of Christ in those days and therefore can be linked to the pose of submission that the man has taken. Along with the expression on his face this could be taken as a pose of determination it can be related to the biblical belief of Jesus being reincarnated and that him, himself will be reincarnated or go to heaven as he has done nothing Here in the image you can see a wrong. couple men standing in an order which yet again shows the depth of the image in the way that the first man is large but they gradually get smaller as they get further away. This is a great use of technical skill within the artwork which shows the artist has really tried to make the scale and proportions as realistic as possible. The way that the men are lined up with guns pointed shows that they are mass executing a group of people as they are heavily armed if anything were to go wrong.
In the far distance you can also see that the people have been led far away from the city. This can be related to the journey that Jesus had to make just before he got crucified on the cross in the way that the main focus being the man in white would have had to make a similar journey knowing that the final destination would be his death. This could also suggest that this is a mass murdering that the people who are committing
intention Now after looking at a range of historical art paintings I will be creating an art exhibition where I will create an exhibition room with a leaflet and poster to go along with it. Within the exhibition I will look at a range of paintings and having an in depth look at different meanings and stories behind the individual pieces. At the end of this project I aiming to have a selection of artworks to showcase in an exhibition with a completed poster, leaflet and exhibition tickets.
Titles
Radical Tales
Dramatic idealised artwork
Revelation spotlight
Clear perspective
Dramatic viewpoint
Radical events
Daring vision
Out of the all the options I have come up with for a title for my exhibition project I have chosen the last option of Daring Vision. The reason I chose this was because most of the historical artists would risk their reputation by creating pieces of artwork that had a deeper meaning that would've conflicted or portrayed their time period in their own opinion. Often their opinions were frowned upon and the work was greatly criticized but sometimes they were used for propaganda reasons to spread a message of a particular person such as the monarchy. Artist were very daring when they'd paint historical paintings of religious events; these created huge contradiction amongst society as artists would often warp and add their own twist to the image that they were originally trying to portray. Whether its making them more dramatic or making them in the image of their own opinion, either way it often led the artist to get into huge trouble within the community.
Art Gallery Poster the reason that I have chosen this poster to analyse is because it is a very colourful yet simple design. This allows the poster to catch the viewers attention yet not be too compacted with information that will put them off. I think the white coloured text goes well with the background but is hard to read especially if the viewer doesn’t have a lot of time; this tells me that if I were to use a colourful background I would need to make the text a different colour such as black so that it is much easier to read on the fly. The text of the poster is fancy, however it is still simple enough for the person to read easily which is an important factor for every poster and is something that I will need to keep in mind when I design my own. A background like this is something that can be easily achieved by mixing paint on a flat surface however instead of using a design like this I will have to relate it to my own project more and will possible go out and do a mini photography shoot to get a range of photos that could be used in the background. If I choose to go along the lines of this poster I will do a nature shoot as my favoured title for my project is daring Vision. I can then combine a specific image from the shoot with an image for the foreground. From here I can then implement any ideas that I have such as a dispersion effect or turning the opacity down to the foreground Thebackground feature in this image to reveal the one.poster where a short caption has been included in the title is a good attention to detail and could possible be used for my poster. It is simple yet effective and makes the overall exhibition sound more interesting. I also like the way that the designer has put lines above and bellow the main information of when and what times the exhibition is open. Along with the names of different artists at the bottom overall makes the poster impressive and the way they have included the artists names at the bottom is a way that I may do Overall I really like poster and the way in which they have layed out the mythis poster. information so that is visible but not taking over the whole page. This is an important thing that I need to consider when making my own design because if there is too much information it will put the viewer off looking at the poster. It will also lower the overall design of the poster and not make it as impressive as I would want it to be. The small attentions to detail such as the small phrase and different coloured text overall rounds the poster to a
The reason I have chosen this book cover to analyse is because it can be related to my title of Daring Vision. The main focus of the cover mainly portrays this by the mind and the streaks that can be viewed as nerves or thoughts. A very simplistic design has created an abstract and meaningful cover that captures the eye of the viewer. To portray the thoughts the illustrator has us used numerous streaks originating from the title Pieces of light. This gives the idea that every one of those streaks of light have lead to a though ot intention and the lines end with a sphere of light ending in the head. But these streaks ending within the silhouettes head may also suggest that the person is trapped in their thoughts and they or their thoughts cannot escape. The style of title that has been used being a block colour and block letter design works really well and is pleasing to the eye with the way that it is placed in the centre of the page. This is very important as if different parts are placed in an odd or unfitting manner this can leave the entire book cover messy and un organised. I will need to keep this in mind for when I am constructing my poster for my art gallery as I want to make it as neat and pleasing to the eye as possible. The colours that have been used in this piece are very simple and contrasting. This doesn’t take the attention away from the main centre piece of the cover. It has also used only three colours which rounds up the cover to a great finish. For the information the designer has used a different colour for the important information to highlight it. Whereas the majority of the writing is black the important stuff has been changed to black; this includes the authors name and the word Memory which relates to the book and is an idea I can use for my design. The majority of the info has also been placed at the top of
Movie poster’s
I have chosen to look at this poster because of the overall layout of it. The main aspect that catches my eye is the way in which they have faded the subjects head into a forest skyline to eventually merge it with the background. I like the way that the text has been layed out with the main names at the top but a large bold title in at the bottom with a short caption that sums up the story. I am inspired by the layout of this text and may use it in my final poster design for this project.
The thing that mainly caught my eye on this poster is how they have used an editing tool like the opacity tool in photoshop to fade the main image of the poster so that it is barely visible over a main larger image in the background. This is another possible idea for my poster and will experiment using an artist in the foreground with an important and noticeable artwork in the background. The font of the poster is really simple and isn’t too distracting to the eye and could be a possible contender for my design.
What I mainly like about this poster is the dispersion effect that they have used on the main subject in the foreground. This is a technique that I can implement in my work myself and will experiment on ways in which I can achieve this effect. The block title is also good with the way that they have made the colours contrast with the overall tones within the poster itself. This is important as when I design my own poster I don’t want the background to outstand my title or the title to be too much and not look fitting enough for my poster.
First I chose an image from online being a painting. The reason I chose this image was because I feel that doing a disruption on a singled out head creates a great dramatic effect and works best.
next I used the magic tool to highlight the head and made that a separate layer. This layer then needed to be duplicated so that I can do two separate editing methods on both to create the overall dispersion effect that I am after
Next I warped the copied layer of the head so that it was angled forward and not in line with the original. I then merged a white background to the original. Using the rubber tool I changed the shape to a square and changed the amount of squares there were and decided whether I wanted a tight or loose cluster. I then used this tool to reveal the distorted image to start the disruption effect Next I used the rubber tool on the black background on the distorted image to take away some of what I created to make it less dense and more dramatic to look like the from of the face is disintegrating away.
this is the final disruption design that I have created when testing this technique. Overall I like the dispurtion effect but would have liked it more if I made it neater and didn’t reveal as much of the distorted face as I have. If I left most of it covered this would have .made it more dramatic and made it even more appealing to the eye. If I was to re do this photoshop technique I would develop on this idea but use a full body figure and make the fading and disintegrating effect /on the models back so that the detail to their face is still there yet there is the dramatic effect of the body blowing away in the wind.
Final Poster Design Leading on from the development of the distortion technique I have decided to develop and progress the idea of a fading away subject into my poster. After studying this painting of Marat by David I finally decided that making the distortion effect on the letter in which the dead man held was fading away. This was because the story of his death says that when he was killed he was reading a letter from a citizen who didn’t agree with his line of work and what he was doing. The desired effect I wanted was to make the letter look as though it was blowing in the wind much like the messages that these paintings portrayed of life being temporary and so little. The reason that I chose this font colour was also because of the painting and the others that I have looked at that often show death in some way or another, also including a short phrase I believe it really draws the attention of the viewer and makes them more interested in coming. Also using other techniques such as the clone tool I deleted the writing on the box and added my own showing the names of the artists that will be featuring in my gallery. Overall I believe that I have achieved what I was aiming for in a poster as it is interesting to
My Visit To The Tate Modern Art Gallery In London
After my visit to the Tate modern in London I have gained ideas for the layout of the gallery I will be designing and the overall way that I will be presenting the artworks. Looking at the design of this world renowned gallery I can see that they have blank white walls to not draw the attention away from the artworks along with the broad and abundant amount of space around the pieces of work to allow the viewers to spread out and see the images from different angles. These are two things that I will have to keep in mind for when I design my own gallery so that it is effective and suits its purpose.
4th November – 12th December 2017 “Opinions can Change Everything”
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this is the overall layout for my gallery and will consist of three main rooms after the corridor that the guests of the gallery will visit. In each room there will be 2-3 paintings on display on opposite walls with a stand of information about the painting. There will also be holders around the gallery containing the leaflets that go into more detail about what the paintings are about. The reason I have decided to layout the gallery in the way that I have is because it is a simple design and the way that the visitors can go from one room to another without getting lost or bored allowing them to see all the pieces of artworks.
Mythology in art In this segment of my project I will be looking at various mythological pieces of art to analyse. Looking to see if there is a deeper meaning behind them.
An Allegory with Venus and cupid This painting was painted in 1545 by a man named Bronzino and was painted onto a panel using oil paints. With the dimensions 146.1 x 116.2 cm this is quite a large scale piece and was designed for art galleries such as the French salon but is currently being kept in the National Gallery in London. This style of art is called mannerism and was first brought about in the 1520’s during the Italian high renaissance. However this style only lasted 60 years when the Baroque style eventually started to replace it. Unlike high Italian renaissance which emphasised proportion, balance and beauty it instead by exaggerating these quality's the end results were unnaturally elegant and asymmetrical.
Bronzino Born in1503 he was a Florentine mannerist painter who was mainly kept busy as a court painter of the Cosimo l de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany who was the second duke of Florence. Mainly sticking to the style of portraiture he only often strayed into the painting of religious subjects and a few allegorical subjects. He trained alongside on of Florence's most renowned painters at the time that being Pontormo, which led to Bronzino’s style being heavily influenced by his teachers. Often painting figures in a cold and unrealistic way affected him as most people looked for realism that they could relate to as there was a disfavour to mannerism during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Using red lines I have shown four quarters of the painting and the two sets of lines that there could be any symmetry. As seen though there is no symmetry and only flowing lines with the positions that the artists has created the figures. This could show that there is perfection in something that isn’t using the natural laws such as symmetry or the golden rectangle. Also the way that this painting is painted in an asymmetrical way can show disorder within this nasty image that was frowned upon when it was released, in order to make it more acceptable the most controversial parts of the painting were painted over to make it more acceptable to society The way that the artists has drawn the figures in the image is very appealing to the eye and fills the majority of the page. He has painted them all with elongated limbs and in a flowy manner that makes them look elegant, however the tones that he has used to make the flesh is cold and doesn’t portray realism and wont allow people to relate to it. In the upper right corner you can see an hour glass that resembles time. This could mean the time in which it took the two lovers to come together or can mean the moment in which the hour glass is counting down to
The dove in the lower left corner symbolises love. This can suggest the bond between two lovers being cupid and Venus, however there is only one dove in the image which could further suggest that there is only one lover in this painting instead of two.
Here you can see one of cupids arrows. Linking to there only being one dove and one lover this suggests that Venus has been forced into loving him. It can suggest that cupid has used one of his arrows on Venus and she has been tricked into loving him In the lower image you can see two mask one resembling comedy and the other resembling tragedy. This may suggest the events of the lovers relationship as they are having a good time but it is destined to end in disaster.
Venus Of Urbino Painted by an artist called titan this is an oil on canvas masterpiece painted in 1583 portraying the idealized woman that every man in the 16th century wished for. Called Venus of Urbino it was created to satisfy the male glare as it was hung up in the salon in France. Titan was known as a venetian artist as he mainly painted in the Italian city of Venice and began his work under another famous venetian artist called Bellini. During the 16th century this was the way that most men fantasised as the perfect woman. Bellini painted this painting with many messages to suggest this and make it welcoming to the viewer The woman and the child in the back also show the capabilities that a man also desired in that era. This being the general qualities of a house wife and the woman being able to clean and do house work. This suggests that the ideal woman for a man was one that is domesticated and will do general work round the house and work hard for their husband The main focus of this painting is a nude woman stretched out on a very neat and long bed. Painted with smooth skin and even tones this was idealized as what the perfect woman should have. Having no hair on their body other than their long flowing hair was also seen as a sign of purity and innocence. The realistic tones of the woman also make it very inviting for the men looking at the painting and shows what they think a woman should look like. This painting is also perpetuating a certain way in which a woman should look to be excepted by people and this is also still something that happens in the 21st century. The direction in which she is looking is also straight at the viewer and this was to satisfy the male glare and make her more inviting to them. This kept the viewers attention on the main focus being the woman and how she is out stretched.
The rose in her hand also suggests fertility as when venus was born the flowers where also born. This also leads to the fact that the artist has painted the woman with a round stomach. This tells us that at some point in the future this woman will be able to conceive children.
Also the way that the woman is covering up her well groomed private areas can suggest that she is pure and doesn’t sleep around. This could also tell the viewer that she is faithful much like the dog suggests. However it also suggests that she has some modesty and cleanliness about her.
Rumpled sheets suggests that they are heavily used Position is more assertive as she looks at you and is more upright. Cat suggests that she is more wild‌ it being on all fours with tail upright as if it is telling the viewer to go as if you have just stumbled into the room Dirt on the ankles shows that she is not clean and that may also further imply that she is used Black maid holding flowers on a rag suggesting that the servant is giving the woman flowers from us. Suggests that she is more important.
Shows the modern world of france in a brothel and a prostitute in the same composition as the piece made by Bellini. Called the painting olimpia so that it could be hung up without any second thoughts in the salon as the woman nude was a popular subject matter. Painted by a man named manet. Shows that the woman is in charge and upon looking at it the people of France are afraid of it because they know it is true and there are many prostitutes in France. Flattened with a harsh light to show imperfection. Didn't lie and showed the true side of women in the 16th century instead of the idealised portraits of the perfect woman called venus.
Olympia This painting was a piece made by a man named Bellini and features a prostitute in the same composition as the previous artwork I have talked about being Venus of Urbino. He called it Olympia to trick the directors of the salon into hanging it up onto the walls without a second thought. The reason behind this painting was to show the world the true side of women at the time and not idealise them in any way. At the time there were a lot of prostitutes in France that men often went to, to get satisfaction and this contradicted and showed that the idealised paintings of Venus were just a lie
Found berried this is a marble sculpture that is estimated to be carved in the 2nd century BC and is signed by a Greek sculptor called Apollonius the son of Nestor which suggested that he was the grand creator of this masterpiece. The most favoured theory of the context behind this piece of artwork is that a soldier named Ajax was in a leant over position contemplating his suicide. Later then killing himself with his own sword. Inspired by the monumental stone sculpture of Egypt and Mesopotamia where the Greeks began to carve into stone more creating more natural figures over the years. “this is the work of a man who knew how to do it better than nature!� was a quote by a great artist himself called Michelangelo as this was a great inspiration to him as it was for many artists since its discovery in the 15th century.
This sculptor is of a man named lacoon and his sons battling a serpent and was sculpted in the century 175-50 BC and being made of marble gave it the structural integrity to be an amazing 242cm tall just a bit more than life size. Lacoon was a Trojan priest who told the people of troy not to except the gift from the Greeks knowing that the gift of a wooden horse will contain a small army of soldiers to breach the behind the walls and kill the Greeks whilst they were sleeping. The statue has been made the format of a pyramid aiming towards a point at lacoons head. Most likely made up of multiple blocks of marble this statue has great attention to detail and using their extraordinary skills the artist has carefully and precisely carved into the stone leaving gaping gaps that could have split off during construction
Thesus and the Centaur The statue of Thesus can be seen in the kunsthistorisches Museum sculped by a man named Antonio Canova with a height of 340cm. It can be found on the upper landing of the stairs; showing greatness as soon as the visitors enter the museum. shaped in the golden rectangle this statue has a flowing movement as Thesus lunges forward to kill the centaur. Stood on the beast Thesus is shown to have great power and strength with what was viewed as the ideal male body.
Originally commissioned to be purchased by napoleon to show their victory over the Austrians in the battle of Marengo in 1850, the sculptor took so long to complete the era in which the victory was seen as a great success was over and the artist Canova had to find another buyer. After looking he found that napoleons father in law Franz II was interested and bought the piece of work and then reinterpreted the sculptor so that it showed their defeat over napoleon in 1814. however it was then situated in the Thesus temple in 1890.
A large triangle has also been formed in the statue using Thesus’ right leg and the centaurs left arm with the helmet being the apex. Not only does this give the top of this large statue stability and structural integrity it also creates an even and grand posture. It emphasises the struggle of the centaur and exaggerates the swing that Thesus is taking with the club in his right hand. The way in which the statue has been constructed is as if the statue is made out of one stone which is a possibility but could be made out of two separate stones for each figure. The material that the statue is made out of also creates a smooth texture and creates realistic reflections and shadows on the figures and the surrounding area as the statue towers up