Johannes Vermeer Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, 1657 Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm Gemäldegalerie, Dresden
Camille Pissarro The Road from Versailles at Louveciennes, 1870 Oil on canvas, 100 x 81 cm Private collection
Bernardo Bellotto Capriccio with the Colosseum 1743‐44 Oil on canvas Galleria Nazionale, Parma
Théodore Gericault Evening: Landscape with an Aqueduct, 1818 Oil on canvas, 250.2 x 219.7 cm The Metropolitan Museum, New York
Johannes Vermeer View of Delft, 1659‐60 Oil on canvas, 97 x 116 cm Mauritshuis, The Hague
Claude Monet Sunrise, 1872 Oil on canvas, 48 x 63 cm Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris Bernardo Bellotto Liechtenstein Garden Palace in Vienna. 1759‐60 Oil on canvas, 100 x 160 cm Liechtenstein Museum, Vienna
Pierre‐Auguste Renoir Dance in the Moulin de la Galette,1876 Oil on canvas, 131 x 175 cm Musée d'Orsay, Paris
How has Vermeer, Canaletto and Turner depicted the importance of sunlight in numerous
After careful research and consideration, I have narrowed my decision down to the theme of Sun for my museum exhibition. My reasoning’s behind this theme is because sun is projected in majority of mediums covering drawing, paintings, and architecture. It is a natural source that has been present since the beginning of time and used daily by everything. With the sun having such a strong impact on everything around us, including ourselves, I intend to investigate the use of this source and how it has influenced and been portrayed onto art throughout the centuries.
Beginning with Vermeer, he was present during the Dutch Golden Period. The Dutch Golden Age spanned the 17th century, in which Dutch trade, science, military, and art were among the most acclaimed in the world. In 1568, the Seven Provinces that later signed the Union of Utrecht, started a rebellion against Philip II of Spain that led to the Eighty Years' War. The War ended in 1648. The Golden Age continued during the Dutch Republic until the end of the century.
In this investigation of analysis I will include a variety of art consisting the subject of Sun with the intentions of making an exhibition. To conclude my research I will keep a biography of the evidence behind the analysis, using primary sources as well as newspapers, museums, articles, documentaries, books, and the internet in general (avoiding unreliable sources). With this information, I could then develop a suitable poster helping with its visual appearance, targeted audience, and location for the exhibition. Further detail into this exhibition, I will discover how Johannes Vermeer, Canaletto and Turner depicted the importance of sunlight in numerous paintings.
Although Dutch painting comes in the general European period of Baroque painting, and shows many of its features that lacks the idealization and Baroque work. The period is best known for reflecting the traditions of realism which was inherited from Early Netherlandish painting.
Johannes Vermeer was a 17th century Baroque, Flemish Dutch painter, born on 31st October 1632, in the southern part of the Netherlands, Delft. He was a son to Reijnier Janszoon and Digna Baltens, who were middle‐class innkeepers and silk weavers, but for an unknown reason they had changed his surname to Vermeer. His father associated with the Guild of St. Luke where he traded and sold various paintings. This is suggested where Vermeer’s art profession had begun. His early years, being apprenticed under artists like Leonart Bramer, Vermeer produced many biblical and mythological paintings but then gradually favouring everyday life scenes in his later works. Vermeer married Catherine, having 15 children in total. He supposedly died of a stroke on 16th December 1675, leaving the family in debt.
Delft during this period was an extremely traditional Catholic and Protestant province that was continuously being invaded by Spanish troops, affecting the economy and art market. This had added to Vermeer's debt as he only searched for local commissions which was unusual for an artist of this time. He focused on chiaroscuro, producing around 35 pieces of art, where he found patronage by a single Delft man named Pieter Van Ruijven.
The Procuress (detail of a self portrait?) Johannes Vermeer 1656 Oil on canvas, 143 x 130 cm. Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden
The term 'camera obscura' translates into 'dark chamber', as its most basic form was a dark room, windows shuttered, with a small hole on one wall. This method uses the sun to portray outlines onto a canvas to give accurate perspectives of what your trying to reveal. Once the light enters the room through the hole, the image outside is transposed invertedly onto the opposite wall. The light travels in a straight line also known as rectilinear propagation of light. The size of the hole influences the image as a small hole creates a sharp but dim image and a larger hole produces a brighter picture but less focused, with the sun only being clearly visible.
It is suggested that Johannes Vermeer was the pioneer of a method called camera obscura. It is not certain that Vermeer used camera obscura but the evidence and layout of his composition has led many to believe that he used this technique in his later works as an aid for his painting. The camera obscura was the prototype of the photographic camera, but without the light‐ sensitive film or plate.
Camera obscura changed around the mid‐ 16th century after a man called Cardano replaced the pinhole with a lens, which was described in his book “De Substilitate Libri. This increased the brightness and image size. You could focus the image by moving the lens or the viewing surface.
A few convincing points were found in the visual qualities produced by Vermeer in his paintings to support the argument he used camera obscura. Variations principal planes of focus; precise diminution of ++; halation of highlights; precise treatment of reflections; closeness of the point of view to the window wall; precise convergence of parallel lines located in a plane perpendicular to the viewing axis; use of curtains to darken viewing room and control subject illumination; relative detail in still life portion versus figure detail; consistent proportions of the paintings (4‐5:5 or almost square); dimensional precision in rendering objects.
It is suggested Vermeer used this method on the “View of Delft”. This oil painting was painted on canvas around 1659‐60, measuring 97cm x 116cm, which is now placed in Mauritshuis, The Hague. The painting was always labelled as his masterpiece and the most famous cityscape of the Dutch Golden Age, which covered majority of the 17th century. It was sold for the upmost amount of 200 guilders in the 1696 auction of Dissius’s 21 Vermeer. The Mauritshuis bought it in 1822 for 2,900 guilders by the Dutch King, Willem I.
It is considered Vermeer painted the View of Delft in his home demonstrated on the image below.
A photograph taken by Adelheid Rech of present day where Vermeer would have taken the painting.
The painting has been divided into four horizontal groups: the quay, the water, the town, and the sky. He portrays an early morning with a blue sky along with a few dark clouds. The sky has just cleared up after a sudden bout of rain. Under these clouds, a shaft of sunlight touches the roofs of Vermeer’s landscape of Delft. The chiaroscuro of the buildings by one another creates a sense of depth as highlighted buildings creating shadowy surroundings.
About 15 figures are portrayed in this painting. The seven figures in the foreground signify Dutch society during the 17th century. Vermeer prided himself on portraying figures in their daily life as Delft was under Spanish rule so most paintings had to depict images of domesticity and the local surroundings with Christian morals and values. He portrays a mother with a child, men and two peasant women all wearing traditional clothing. They represent the idealism of Delft community during the peak of its working society. The three men where fashionable attire and the other figures wear peasant garment of black skirts and jackets with white collars. Vermeer had painted out a figure that stood to the right of the two‐peasant woman.
Most of the town is shadowed apart from the central tower, the Nieuwe Kerk Church. The church has been emphasised by sunlight making it the cities symbolic core.
On the right of the painting, Vermeer depicts the Rotterdam Gate and above it is the main building with the barbican and twin towers. The building is shaded in front as the sun is coming from behind. Although, there are bright patches of sun, which is evidently above the gate. This identifies the light sourced and positioning of the clouds. The dramatic morning sky takes up over half of the picture which adds the illusion of a breezy climate. The patchiness of the shadows creates a baroque style which Vermeer was very fond of.
In front is a double draw‐bridge shows a few small shipyards alongside the Schie canal. Smaller boats increased in the 17th century for the use of trade, specifically designed for the herring fishery. On these shipyards, faded figures are portrayed in the background and alongside the back wall.
This building is Schiedam Gate. Again, it had been shadowed using tints of white to highlight the corners to make the building seem three‐dimensional. The tiny clock shows it’s just past 7 o’clock, which gives the viewer a hint at the time of day it is. The buildings are made of red brick with a layer of limestone. The red brick was an affordable resource but the limestone was expensive and most likely imported.
Behind the main gate building on the left, you can just about see the Armamentarium, also known as the weapons warehouse, that still stands today. This building was for storing large wooden material like planks, beams, grain mills on carts and battering rams, for warfare use.
This section of water is part of the River Schie that flows into the Rhine of Schiedam, near Rotterdam. This part of the river has a triangular form which had been in widened in 1614 that aided the harbour of Delft. Vermeer portrays a clear river with precise ripples on the water. The placing of light and shadow from these buildings above help predict the time this image was painted and helps define the cities distance. Thin strokes of brown‐grey and grey‐blue paint show reflection on the water and these are softened with a brush. Camera obscura has been used to show shimmering in the water to emphasize the shine so that each ripple could be depicted.
Vermeer uses bold colours for his painting. The main colours used are lead white, yellow ochre, natural ultramarine, and madder lake. The sky is painted with a mild brown and yellow ochres to separate the clouds from the sunlight and other bold colours are used on the roof of the buildings and sunlit areas to create a deeper perspective. Vermeer mixed sand into the paint to create and uneven surface. The grainy effect gave the painting a three‐dimensional appearance. Vermeer used camera obscura in many of his oil paintings, like “The Milkmaid”, “Woman Holding her Balance”, and many more. The figures are placed in the exact same area with sunlight coming in from the left‐hand side. Vermeer has replaced a few objects and figure gestures, making the argument if he has used camera obscura or not, highly convincing.
Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance 1662‐63 Oil on canvas, 42,5 x 38 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington
Without camera obscura, it wouldn’t be possible to create precise portraits of what you intend on revealing. A prime example of an artist from the 17th century that didn’t use camera obscura is Louis de Caullery and you can see that the background of his painting is blurred. This is possibly because he was focusing on the two building in the front but it is still the view he intended on painting that would have come with great difficulty in making it accurate.
Johannes Vermeer, The Milkmaid c. 1658 Oil on canvas, 45,5 x 41 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam Louis de Caullery “A View of the Campidoglio, Rome” 17th century, oil on panel, 50 x 71 cm. Private collection
Another suggest painting, along with the “View of Delft” that Vermeer most likely used camera obscura on was “Little Street”. Many locations for this image have been proposed, but the most suited location was the Vlamingstraat. Vlamingstraat was a narrow street that runs next to a canal in the centre of Delft, where Vermeer was born.
Johannes Vermeer The Little Street 1657–1661 Oil on canvas 54.3 x 44 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
The Little Street displays a mix of features, revealing painting on brick, wood, and glass, trees and sky, and portraying four figures of two women and two children. Vermeer supposedly sits in front of Old Woman’s and Old Man's Almshouse, which was directly across the street from Vermeer's home. The fact that the Delft almshouse was torn down in 1661 can be used to support the date assigned to this picture. A curator of 17th century paintings at the Rijksmuseum, Pieter Roelofs explains “The answer to the question as to the location of Vermeer’s The Little Street is of great significance, both for the way that we look at this one painting by Vermeer and for our image of Vermeer as an artist.”
iVlamingstraat in Delft, at the point where the present‐day numbers 40 and 42 stand.
Vermeer uses thee clouds that are achieved with gentle but rapid diagonal brushstrokes of white with red ochre and blue azurite. Blue azurite was the most common blue found on the palette of 17th‐century Dutch painters, also used on the “View of Delft”.
He gives the illusion of a sunlit day. By adding clouds, he could emphasize on chiaroscuro within his portrait of the “Little Street”.
Grape vines are in a variety of Dutch cityscapes. However, Dutch grapes failed to produce drinkable wine because there was often little sunlight, so instead, used for a decorative effect. Vines have symbolized loyalty and marriage or domestic virtue but there is no evidence Vermeer made this link.
Rows of worn cobblestones create a sense of depth. Soapy water streams down from the servants wash basin into a gutter, which runs along the wall dividing the properties of the doorways. The water then flowed into a canal below just out of view.
Vermeer depicted a house which dates from the late 15th, or the beginning of the 16th century. The house had tall ceilings, well‐lit rooms and unusual step‐gables making it one of the surviving medieval houses of the time.
The house was saved by the Great Fire in 1536 which had destroyed a vast amount of Delft. It shows repainting and crack patches that may have been caused by another civic tragedy, which was the Thunderclap in 1654. An ammunitions magazine exploded killing hundreds of citizens and homes.
Little Street remains the most naturalistic interpretations of a 17th‐century Dutch cityscape. The finished image shares topographic tradition of current landscape painting. The main building is unusually off‐centre and cropped off on the top, which encourages the sense of a close‐up, almost like a photograph, adding to the evidence of camera obscura. It is unlikely that it had been regarded as a memorial "portrait" of a specific house.
Vermeer's signatureis imprinted above the rustic benches placed on the left of the canvas.
A fully‐clothed maid is portrayed washing laundry over a wooden barrel at the end of the private alleyway. A broom stands close to the figure. In the 17th century, sweeping and booms had strong relations with cleanliness and purity. The thought of domestic virtue was important to the Christendom and Dutch nation, hence why Vermeer painted the working life of citizens. Vermeer had initially painted a seated woman doing handiwork at the entrance of the alleyway. She was taken out as she was likely to be obstructing the passageway, effecting the three dimensionality.
A boy and a girl are portrayed playing, facing away and dressed as miniature adults. By turning away from the viewer, Vermeer motivates us to explore the thoughts and emotions of his own childhood.
The elderly woman is seen doing needlework, possibly sewing, judging by the large piece of clothe on her lap. Sewing was an attribute of domestic virtue of Biblical origin.
Vermeer was ahead of his time for his cityscapes from the help of the sun. The sun helped Vermeer to navigate the right proportions of buildings distances, layout, and figure proportions. It allowed Vermeer to use the sun to see where the reflections and shadows will fall, creating a three‐dimensional, dynamic illusion. Many thought camera obscura wasn’t a talent as the picture was already there for you to paint, like tracing, but this technique had helped to advance in many aspects for things we use today. It has advanced portraiture and even make it come to ‘life’ through films. This all resulted with making him a master of Dutch painting and forever inspiring continuing artists like Théophile Thoré who aimed to rediscover Vermeer and the artist Giovanni Antonio Canal, better known as Canaletto.
Théophile Thoré‐Bürger Date taken – unknown, Author – unknown
Antonio Visenti Portrait of Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto before 1735 Engraving Royal Collection, Windsor
An 18th century artist named Giovanni Antonio Canal, better known as Canaletto meaning “Little Canal”. He was a Rococo painter that was highly inspired by Vermeer and suggestively used the same technique as the Dutch master himself. Canaletto was born on 28th October 1697 in Venice where he admired and depicted views of the city of Venice. He was a son to Bernardo Canal and Artemisia Barbieri. He began an occupation in his father’s steps as a theatrical scene painter. On his return from Rome in 1719, he began painting his well‐known topographical paintings which were said to be formed with the use of camera obscura for accuracy, under the training of the older Luca Carlevaris. Carlevaris was famous for his urban cityscapes. Canaletto's early artwork was painted 'from nature'. Majority of his later works tend to have distant figures, painted as blobs of colour. This was an effect formed by using a camera obscura because it blurred object further away. English collectors, on their Grand Tour, admired Canaletto’s artwork and often commissioned them through the agency of the merchant Joseph Smith. In 1739. Britain declared war on Spain and the 'War of Jenkins's Ear' began. This began after repeated depredations on British ships by Spanish 'guarda costas'. This was mainly a colonial
war in Caribbean waters. It was named after a Captain Robert Jenkins. Britain declared war on Spain whose ear had been severed by the Spanish. The War lasted until 1748, but the war formed into a larger war called the Austrian Succession, which took place from October 1740 until October 1748. This war reduced Canaletto’s commissions greatly as it was too risky associating with the British.
After his return to Venice, Canaletto was elected to the Venetian Academy in 1763. In his later works, he often worked from old sketches and continued painting until his death in 1768, successfully teaching his pupils; Bernardo Bellotto, Francesco Guardi, Michele Marieschi, Gabriele Bella, Giuseppe Moretti, and Giuseppe Bernardino Bison.
Canaletto often produced pictures that were above street level and not always portraying houses where they should be. Above ground level gives a clue as to how the views were found. The person commissioning a painting would have wanted a view from the main room of their house and that room was almost always on the first floor.
Cityscape painting of his is the “View of the Bacino di San Marco (St Mark’s Basin)”. Painted between 1730‐35. Oil on canvas 54cm x 71cm, placed in Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan
Antonio Visenti Portrait of Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto before 1735 Engraving Royal Collection, Windsor
Canaletto used the camera obscura method, the sun being the main resource. By putting curtains over the windows in front of the view of Bacino di San Marco, he would then make a small hole within one curtain. He then placed a lens or lenses in this hole. The sunlight then projected an upside‐down image onto a canvas or a sheet of paper, which Canaletto used a lot. This was a very similar method to Vermeer but Canaletto had access to a lens which made the made the image more precise and easier to form.
Canaletto produces a rococo approach to the layout of this scene, which was inherited from the Grand Tour from classical buildings and strong baroque shading. Every object observed from reality but arranged in an almost geometric sequence. The painting depicts a highly dynamical balance marked by a complex "choral" harmony which reveals its true nature. He did this by applying theoretical perspective to an object to simulate another, he rediscovered an object's natural perspective. He celebrates the height of Venice’s by portraying the working lives under a blue sky.
Canaletto has portrayed a scene from Piazza San Marco, also known as St Mark’s Square. This building is Palazzo Ducale, or Doges Palace which was built in two parts. The eastern wing, which faces the Rio di Palazzo, was built between 1301 and 1340. The western wing, facing the Piazetta San Marco, took an additional 110 years to build and was
completed in 1450. Canaletto manages to create a replica portraying smooth repetition and a harmonious design. In comparison to his English grey ground paintings, he uses soft traditional Venetian colours in the overall canvas, which were warm reds, orange, and tones of brown as you can see in the Palazzo Ducale. He creates Gothic, Moorish, and Renaissance architecture characteristics.
First digital image by Roxane Sperber. Giovanni Antonio Canal (Canaletto), Cross‐section from an area of green trees on the horizon, Venice: the Piazzetta towards S. Giorgio Maggiore, ca. 1724, oil on canvas, 173.0 x 134.3 cm Second digital image by Roxane Sperber. Giovanni Antonio Canal (Canaletto), Cross‐section from area of water with wave, Westminster Bridge, with the Lord Mayor’s Procession on the, 1747, oil on canvas, 95.9 x 127.6 cm, Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut
The building is central‐right to the painting. Its structure consists of arches for doors and windows and smaller pillars holding the middle structure in the centre up. The pillars show a traditional Romanesque appearance, which was one of the main attributes to neoclassical paintings and artists on the Grand Tour. The fall of the shadows indicates that the San Marco view is shown in late morning light, while that of the Doge’s Palace is seen in the afternoon. The sun is supposedly beaming from the top left onto the building, creating shadows along the top of the building, right edge of the windows and darkness below in the arches to the doors. The use of chiaroscuro creates a sense of depth and liveliness to the urban surroundings and building, encouraging the image to come to life.
In the centre, Canaletto portrays San Marco or translated into Saint Mark’s column. Placed to the left of Saint Mark is San Theodoro or other known as Saint Teodoro of Amasea, is hidden behind the building in this perspective. Saint Mark birth date is unknown. He was one of Christ's 70 disciples and the four evangelists, born in Cyrene, Libya. He travelled with Saint Barnabas and Saint Paul on religious missions, during which he founded the Church of Alexandria. He died in 68 A.D. In Alexandria, Egypt. His presence printed around Venice has become an iconic figure and the columns have become a gateway to the city. Until the mid‐ 18th century, where Saint Mark and Saint Teodoro have become allegorical figures for justice as criminal executions were held at the piazetta. The two columns are painted red, signifying where public executions are held. Behind the columns and Doge’s Palace, you can see the back of the cathedral of St Mark's Basilica.
On the left of the painting, Canaletto has portrayed the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica, named the San Marco Campanile. It stands above all the other buildings, making it a symbolic mark for the cityscape. It is 98.6 meters tall, making it the highest tower in Venice. It was completed in 1152 by the Doge Domenico Morosini.
Canaletto paints the tower one colour, matching the Doges Palace, creating an orange, yellow tint. A pyramidal top caps the tower. A golden weathervane in the form of an archangel Gabriel sits at the top of the point today but the point in Canaletto’s painting has been cropped out. The campanile reached its present form in 1514. The replica still stands after lightening and earthquakes has had its toll on the structure. It had been reconstructed in 1912 after its collapse in 1902, damaging its surroundings.
Canaletto faces the Venetian lagoon which was completed in the early 15th century, though portions of it were rebuilt after a fire in 1574. He includes about ten figures in the foreground and many tiny figures in the background, supporting the case of Canaletto using camera obscura. The figure on the far left has been considered to Vermeer as he paints a portrait of the city. All the other figures seem to be transporting goods. Venice is famous for their canals and Gondolas which are flat‐ bottomed, asymmetrical Venetian rowing boats. They are well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. They have similar features to a canoe, except it is narrower. Gondolas are handmade using 8 different types of wood (fir, oak, cherry, walnut, elm, mahogany, larch, and lime) and are composed of 280 pieces. The oars are made of beech wood.
For centuries, the gondola was the leading use of transportation and most common watercraft within Venice, having 8‐10,000 gondolas during the 17th and 18th century. Their primary role today is to carry tourists on rides at fixed rates, serving as traghetti (ferries) over the Grand Canal as public transportation. Canaletto created many paintings of Venice during his lifetime, some similar to “View of the Bacino di San Marco” but with slightly different perspectives.
In this painting, he has produced a wider perspective, however with different colour tones creating a more sunny appearance. The sun is beaming directly onto the view, forming little contrast and resulting with fewer shadows from the buildings. Canaletto created many similar perspectives like “Palazzo Ducale and the Piazza di San Marco”, perhaps with different weather condition which was useful for propaganda and in perfecting the perfect view.
Canaletto, Palazzo Ducale and the Piazza di San Marco c. 1755 Oil on canvas, 51 x 83 cm Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence
Canaletto painted Piazza San Marco from many different angles. This painting, which was originally in the collection of Prince of Liechtenstein, is now currently displayed in California.
Canaletto “View of Venice with St Mark’s” c.1735. Oil on canvas 46cm x 63cm. Displayed in Huntington Art Collection, San Marino, California, USA.
Piazza San Marco is the official centre of Venice where throughout the centuries, tourists all around the world come and celebrate and work in the offices of the state. Canaletto creates a sense of topographical detail into his composition with the sunlight coming from the right‐hand side. It shines onto the gothic architecture.
He portrays Doges Palace in the background on the left with a geomantic, architectural structure, which is hidden behind the Basilica Byzantine Cathedral in the foreground of the image. Although, Canaletto manages to illuminate it with sunlight, still bringing it to the surface, making it central so it is still recognised and stands‐ out from the angle of the view.
The building on the left in the foreground dominates the image. This building is Basilica di San Marco, also known as Chiesa d’Oro (The Golden Church). This church was destroyed in 976 during a rebellion against Doge Pietro Candiano IV. A second church was built in 1063 but was not consecrated until 1094, after Saint Mark’s relics, which had been lost in the years following the destruction of the first church, were rediscovered. It has distinctive white and pale‐rose pigmented marble with opulent Byzantine decoration. The front of the structure displays five large round‐arches. He paints the gilded mosaic with bright strokes in comparison to the detailed building itself. Above every arch are four horses of St Mark, looted from the Hippodrome of Constantinople in 1204.
Canaletto portrays the Saint Teodoro of Amasea column vaguely, like in “View of the Bacino di San Marco (St Mark's Basin)” on the right in the background. However, this time he portrays Saint Teodoro and Saint Mark’s column together. The columns draw your attention to the background. It’s capped by a lion which was the Saints evangelistic symbol.
Past the columns you can just about see the island of San Giorgio Maggiore in the lagoon beyond. Adding the lagoon reminds and helps promotes Venice’s maritime history and watery location. Canaletto had a wide range of green earth colours in Venice ranging from deep forest greens to turquoise colours. He used green‐blue pigments to paint the water of the Venetian canals. In some of Canaletto’s paintings, he had recently introduced during his time in England, a blue pigment called blue verditer that had not been previously identified in his Venetian palette. This blue replaced the green earth pigments.
Canaletto lightens the image with a clear blue sky and white clouds. The clouds and blue sky indicate a hot climate. He paints the clouds quite loosely, unlike in Vermeer’s painting which was at least a century earlier. Vermeer paints fluffy and bold clouds with a prominent dark cloud that partially covers the cityscape. Canaletto was famed for his use of light. He was influenced by Vermeer, who also includes a dark cloud which covers part of the city.
Canaletto “View of Venice with St Mark’s” Detailed view of the clouds in comparison to Vermeer’s clouds.
Vermeer. “View of Delft” Detailed view of the clouds in comparison to Canaletto’s clouds.
This shadows and restricts the sunlight greatly as he paints a contract of light and shadow on the pavement. In comparison to the foreground, he emphasises the figures shadows where the sun is beaming onto them.
The long shadows stretch across the square, forming from the right to the left, suggests it is a late afternoon as the sun is about to go into sunset.
Like Vermeer, Canaletto portrays the different social classes doing everyday responsibilities and general walking around the square. He differentiates the diverse classes by what they are wearing and what they are doing. Some figures are dressed down, with beige clothing which gives the viewer the impression of a less wealthy, social status and some are wearing all black with hats, almost like a uniform – just like the characters at the front in “View of Delft”. They give the impression of some sort of importance. Canaletto depicts the importance of the sun by using it as a powerful feature in creating depth in the painting. He uses a strong contrast with a high intensity of sunlight to create shadows and reflections of the architecture, objects and people onto the canal and pavement. Unlike Vermeer, he uses smooth brushstrokes to keep a flat surface, whereas Vermeer added sand to make it standout.
The smooth appearance helps create a three‐ dimensional appearance like a photograph with the help of realistic shadows and cutting off the painting like in “View of Venice with St Mark’s” on the right‐side, which was later used by artists like Edgar Degas. Canaletto’s use of sunlight was striking. He is announced for his precision with the suggested method of camera obscura. It has been considered that he left little clues as he did not want to be accused of potential witchcraft.
Years on, Canaletto helped to influence many other artists in the progression of their careers still baffled by his accuracy. Joseph Mallord William Turner was one of the main artists inspired by Canaletto’s precisions. Although, Turner didn’t use camera obscura, but his paintings were also precise, including the sun in his oil paintings and other mediums of his art, helping the enhance the portraits.
Joseph Mallord William Turner was born April 1775, Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, London. His father, William Gay Turner moved to London around 1770 to follow his father’s trade, where he eventually became a barber and wig‐maker. His mother came from a line of prosperous London butchers and shopkeepers. Turner was sent to stay with uncles at Brentford in 1785 and Sunningwell in 1789, and to Margate in 1786 where he also attended school due to his mother, Mary Marshall, mental disturbance. At home his father encouraged his
Landscapes and antiquarian topography were popular during this period. In the following years he advanced in the styles of the Old Masters and made rapid progression in their techniques. He was favoured by many which led to big commissions by patrons like Richard Colt Hoare, William Beckford and Duke of Bridgewater. In 1819, Turner visited Italy. The first time he travelled to Venice, Rome and Naples where he was inspired by Canaletto.
His father's death in 1829 affected him and his artwork, resulting with depression. His studies Joseph Mallord William Turner Self‐Portrait showed that he was a Romantic landscape painter, c. 1799 watercolourist and printmaker, which were said to Oil on canvas, 74 x 58 cm have laid the foundation for Impressionism due to Tate Gallery, London their careless brushstrokes in some of the paintings. artistic talent. In December 1789, young Turner entered the Royal He died in the house of his mistress Sophia Caroline Academy Schools, where he progressed from the Plaister Academy, Booth in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea on 19 December drawing from casts of ancient sculpture, to the life class in 1792. By 1794, with his friend Thomas Girtin, he attended the evening ‘academy’ 1851. He was recognised as "the painter of light“. accommodated by Dr Thomas Monro at his house in the Adelphi, they His last words were suggested to be "The sun is God" before passing away. both studied in copying works by other artists.
Turner was present during a time where European politics, philosophy, science and communications were fundamentally reoriented. It was referred to as the “Age of Reason or the “Enlightenment”. The early Enlightment began in 1685 by natural philosophers of the Scientific Revolution, including Galileo, Kepler and Leibniz. The movement increased in the high Enlightment, lasting roughly until 1815. the high Enlightment was a time of religious faith being questioned among more rational lines and deists and materialists argued that the universe seemed to determine its own course without God’s intervention. The late Enlightment led to the French Revolution of 1789. This threw out the old authorities to remake society along rational lines.
The Enlightenment eventually resulted with the 19th‐ century Romanticism. The term itself was invented in the 1840s, in England. However, the movement had been present since the late 18th century, primarily in Literature and Arts. In England, Wordsworth, Shelley, Keats, and Byron characterised Romanticism. Romanticists believed that the advances made by the Enlightenment were creating an cruel, and conformist society. They believed that science and rationality could never truly understand the world and the human personality.
The Enlightenment produced numerous books, essays, inventions, scientific discoveries, laws, wars and revolutions. The American and French Revolutions were directly inspired by Enlightenment ideals.
Romanticism conflicted with "classicism," where it portrays idealistic and the goodness of the natural. Romanticism shows logic and reason cannot explain everything. In the visual arts, Romanticism appeared in landscape painting from as early as the 1760s. British artists began to turn to introduce natural catastrophes and Gothic architecture.
The most influential publication of the Enlightenment was the Encyclopaedia. This was published between 1751 and 1772 in thirty‐five volumes. The publication was compiled by Denis Diderot, Jean le Rond d'Alembert, and 150 scientists and philosophers who helped spread the ideas of the Enlightenment across Europe.
Turner produced many Venetian paintings during his visit to Italy in the 1830’s, which were influenced by Canaletto. Canaletto not only inspired the portraiture but also the technique. They both use squiggles, dashes and dots in their artwork. His lines are energic, fluid and subtle. He was also taught different styles from artists like Piranesi, Ducros,, Loutherbourgh, and Vernet. It is believed his intentions were to gather and transform foreign techniques to produce a unique style.
The paint is thickly applied and masks the weave of the canvas. The base is white with layers of gray, beige and imprimatura. Glazes and scraps are craved creating light‐colored paint that create the luminous effect. The details of architecture and rigging are accomplished with very thin fluid paint occasionally reworked by scratching in with a blunt tool. At the 1834 Royal Academy show, critics gave praise to the scene’s radiant, sparkling waters. Turner devised this Venetian cityscape as a symbolic salute to commerce. It was originally painted for Painted for Henry McConnel, The Polygon, Ardwick, Manchester but now lies with The National Gallery.
Joseph Mallord William Turner Venice: The Dogana and San Giorgio Maggiore, 1834 oil on canvas overall: 91.5 x 122 cm Widener Collection of The National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
The statue portrays two Atlases lifting a golden bronze sphere on the top of which is where Giuseppe Benoni's Fortune stands. By turning indicates the direction of the wind. The last renovation of the building was done by Alvise Pigazzi in 1838.
On the right is the Punta della Dogana, topped by a statue of Fortune or Atlas. Punta della Dogana The building continued to be a customs house, until is located between the Grand and the 1980s. After 20 years of abandonment, the Giudecca Canals at the tip of an island Venice city council transformed it into a in the Dorsoduro district. Adjacent contemporary art space, designed by architect Tadao to each other are the Dogana da Mar, Patriarchal Seminary, and Santa Ando. In June 2009, after 14 months of work, Punta Maria della Salute. It is diagonal from the Piazza San Marco. This point della Dogana reopened to the public. Still today, the was used for docking and customs as early as the beginning of the 15th building has been presenting temporary exhibitions century. The temporary structures built to store merchandise. The since. customs workers were replaced by the Punta della Dogana when it began construction in the 1670’s.
Like in many of Canaletto’s Venice cityscapes, Turner copies the features of Canaletto’s paintings of granolas covering the cannels. He uses strong, bright natural light which creates long shadows from the west that helps to emphasise shadows, reflections of the objects and colours from objects. Shadows are boldly painted with the blue of the sky as it is reflected onto the surface, giving a sense of freshness and openness.
Canaletto “View of Venice with St Mark’s” (Detailed) c.1735. Oil on canvas 46cm x 63cm. Displayed in Huntington Art Collection, San Marino, California, USA
Turner creates a much brighter image with fewer clouds. They appear as if they’ve been applied with a small pallet knife father than a brush. This creates a more three‐dimensional appearance, which both artists were good at portraying. One similar comparison is the shape of the clouds. They both create arches and shapes in the clouds to make them more realistic and not as blockish that can seem quite cartoon looking considering they both cut off the image, almost like a photograph. This will help with the importance of the sun coming through the clouds, making patches of shadows on the ground.
Although, Turner did enjoy the views of Italy, he also painted allegorical pieces which were more Romantic than the almost neo‐ classical looking images of Venice. Turner uses a completely different approach to “The Fighting Temeraire”.
Turner did not necessarily use the importance of the sun as a tool to portray accurate landscapes like Vermeer and Canaletto, but with Canaletto’s influence, he used the sun as an allegoric message to the viewers of the 19th century and onwards.
Joseph Mallord William Turner The 'Fighting Temeraire' tugged to her Last Berth to be broken up 1838‐39 Oil on canvas, 91 x 122 cm National Gallery, London
During a time of evolving adaptations to dated resources of transportation, Turners painting of “The Fighting Temeraire” depicts an accurate portrait of new machinery taking over. The 98‐gun ship 'Temeraire' played a distinguished role in Nelson's victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, which is where the famous name of ‘Fighting Temeraire‘ was derived from. The ship remained in service until 1838. Temeraire was ordered from Chatham Dockyard on 9 December 1790, designed by Surveyor of the Navy Sir John Henslow and commissioned on 21 March 1799 under Captain Peter Puget. The ship was part of Neptune class, along with HMS Neptune and HMS Dreadnought. Turner has portrayed the ship being towed from Sheerness to Rotherhithe to be broken up. The is suggested to represent the decline of Britain's naval power. The Victory and Temeraire defeated Napoleon's forces with combined tactics. Ultimately it was the Temeraire what lead Britain to victory. The monumental ship is contrasted by the the new steam‐powered ship that is tugging the larger ship behind. The old war ship towers over the new Steam power tug, which is portrayed with little personality. He records the sad moment in his painting.
It was suggest the ship was pulled by two tugboats not one, but for the sake of Turners depiction, he only shows one. The ship is being tugged ultimately to her death where it will soon be broken up for scraps. The replacement of the steam‐powered ship is smaller and more prosaic in comparison and could move a lot quicker due to it being powered by steam. Turner portrays the Temeraire with lack of vibrancy, using warm but pale colours, but quite translucent like it has been unfinished compared to the rest of the painting. This gives a ‘ghost ship’ appearance.
A model of the HMS Temeraire (1798)
The first paddle tugs were steam powered which were first introduced to Britain. They were used to tow vessels up and down rivers, reducing the delays from having to wait for favourable tides and winds. The tug was the wooden hulled Monarch which was built by Edward Robson of South Shields in 1833. The tug was under 20m long and fitted with a 20HP single cylinder steam engine. The Monarch was acquired by John Watkins & William Ogilby in 1834 and served the port of London until it was scrapped in 1876. It is portrayed a black and brown colour. This is not only the colour of the tug but it also depicts the colour of death in this case as it taking the Temeraire off. It has steam coming out showing the viewer it is a steam boat and it is pulling another ship. One of the attributes of a romantic painter is that they tend to use a triangular form, having the main feature at the point of the image. For this case, the Temeraire is the point of this triangular form. A white small craft farther down the river has been painted. However, the small boat and the third boat on the far‐right may seem like they have no purpose but it is helping to form the triangle and even out the image. Turner also uses a second triangular form, using a blue to frame around the three boats to broaden them the surface. This layout was also used by artists like Caspar David Fredrich.
Caspar David Fredrich The Wanderer Above the Sea and Fog 1818, oil on canvas 98 × 74 cm Kunsthalle Hamburg
Turner uses warm tones on the Thames estuary which is at the river's eastern end. He portrays a lifeless surface with no ripples in the water, apart from around the stream boat where he uses a silver tone. The sun is behind the boats creating shadows to reflect in front. The background has been mostly devoid of objects to ensure the Termeraire is the focal point. Turner uses pastel tones for the sky, with rapid brushstrokes. Although, he used oil paints, he applied paint with a palette knife, a tool usually reserved for mixing colours. Mixed with the paint he also used bees wax to lift the painting off the surface. This helped create a three‐dimensional look and allowed the canvas to catch light. As the sun sets above the estuary, its rays extend into the clouds above it, and across the surface of the water which create a warm yellow tone. The lighting in this piece was achieved through the emphasis of light and loose brushstrokes. The sun setting symbolises the end of an era in the history of the British Royal Navy and the commencement of the new, industrial era. It is suggested that the ship stands for Turner himself, with an accomplished past but now anticipating his mortality. Turner called The Fighting Temeraire his "darling", which may have been due to its beauty, or his identification with the subject. He intended to raise a sentimental and sad response from the viewer.
“Light is therefore colour.” ‐ J. M. W. Turner This quote supports the importance of the sun to Turner. if there is so no light, there would be no colour to create a real life images.
To conclude my research of the question how does Vermeer, Canaletto and Turner depict the importance of the sun in their artwork, we can easily see that it has developed over time and even used in various ways. One thing we know for sure is that the sun played a massive part to their artwork and their progress as Turner supposedly said before he died “The sun is God”. Without the sun, these artists wouldn’t have made as much as an impact on society, other artists and history for that matter. Vermeer depicted the importance as he used it generally in his paintings but he took advantage of the sun by using it in his artwork differently to how most people would imagine. In his later works, camera obscura was his saviour as he produced a lot of accurate panting's under this method. He found that the importance of the sun was what made his images and without it, there wouldn’t be as many treasures like the View of Delft or Little Street. Canaletto on the other hand, he also used the suns importance as a method of portraying his images like Vermeer. His were slightly more accurate as the lens soon came into the method. He also used it as a way of using strong chiaroscuro and reflecting the sun onto the lovely views of Venice which helped knowing what time of day it was.
The sun was used as propaganda for his paintings to show everyone how wonderful it was in Venice so this was taken advantage of highly. Lastly, after Canaletto meeting Vermeer and Turner in the middle with his use of the sun, Turner used it completely differently to Vermeer. Turner was inspired by Canaletto so his use of sun was slightly similar. He didn’t use camera obscura but he did manage to get some lovely perspectives and sunshine of Venice. After Turners mother passing away, his images became a lot more meaningful where they were filled with emotion. He used the sun in many ways like displaying it in sunset painting to portray it’s natural beauty and colours or he used the importance as an allegorical message. Like in the Fighting Temeraire is setting which is suggesting it is setting on a new era. To conclude my question, they all show some link to each other and to the sun if it is visually there or somehow used to actually make the painting.
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