Most of us probably got bored in elementary school when the discussion was all about art history. As adults, however, we become more appreciative of art’s beauty and origin. Some of us love going on trips to the museum using our credit cards since we’ve learned that art gives us an experience that is so surreal. It makes us think beyond and feel the depths of the artists’ thoughts and emotions.
Much art is visually striking as it embodies a timeless perfection. Over the past centuries, art history has been known to evolve radically. We have to give the art historians credit for giving us the rundown of the fine arts: painting, architecture, sculpture, and more. Their analysis of the virtues of art provides us with an understanding that art manifests a certain artist’s ingenuity.
This article will give us a summary of the characteristics of Renaissance Art, Mannerism, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassicism, and Romanticism. Read below:
Renaissance Art (1400–1600)
The Renaissance period featured painting, decorative art, and sculpture that focused on individualism and nature. It flourished in Florence, Italy, during the 15th and 16th centuries, due to the Medici, a prominent merchant family who largely supported humanism and arts. Italian sculptor Donatello and designer Filippo Brunelleschi were key innovators during this era.
The High Renaissance lasted from 1490 to 1527 and produced influential artists, including Raphael, da Vinci, and Michelangelo, each of whom spearheaded emotional expression and brought creative power. The artwork during this period characterizes attention to detail, realism, and thorough study of the human anatomy.
Mannerism (1527–1580)
Mannerist artists surfaced from the ideals of Raphael, Michelangelo, and other artists from the Late Renaissance. Their focus on technique and style, however, outweighed the subject matter’s meaning to a huge degree. Figures often had elongated limbs, small heads, and exaggerated details. This art form yielded more stylized compositions than classical ideals of linear perspective and harmonious design used by their Renaissance predecessors.
Mannerist artists include Francesco Salviati, Giorgio Vasari, and Domenico Beccafumi. Bronzino is widely considered as the chief Mannerist painter in Florence, Italy, during his time.
Baroque (1600–1750)
The Baroque period comes next after Mannerism, and it yielded over-the-top architecture and visual arts. Characterized by grandeur, art during this era displayed an interest in global discovery and broadening human intellect.
Baroque arts were stylistically complex and characterized by drama, as evidenced by the iconic art investments of Dutch painter Rembrandt and Italian painter Caravaggio. Painters used a contrast between light and darkness with energetic compositions toned by rich color palettes.
Rococo (1699–1780)
Rococo first started in Paris and encompassed architecture, sculpture, decorative art, and painting. In contrast with Baroque’s exuberance, Rococo offered a softer style of art and is characterized by elegance and lightness. It also focused on subtle colors, natural forms, and asymmetrical design.
Painters such as Francois Boucher and Antoine Watteau utilized fresh colors, lighthearted treatments, and rich brushwork. The Rococo style is also mostly translated to porcelain, silver, French furniture, and flooring. We can still find many armoires and chairs that feature floral designs, curving forms, and expressive use of gilt.
Neoclassicism (1750–1850)
The Neoclassical era drew upon classical antiquity elements. The discovery of archaeological ruins of ancient civilizations in Naples and Athens at the time reignited a new passion for all things related to the past, which is why artists from this period gassed up their art by recreating the great works of ancient art. They displayed classical ideals of simplicity, harmony, and proportion.
Neoclassical artists focused on idealism and historically relevant depictions. For instance, Italian sculptor Antonio Canova involved classical elements in his marble sculptures but kept away from the cold artificiality represented in several early creations.
Romanticism (1780–1850)
Romanticism incorporates a wide range of disciplines, from literature to painting to music. These art forms reject harmony, order, and rationality and instead emphasized the individual and his imagination. The Romantic ideal was a deep appreciation for nature, with many artists turning to plein air painting, or what is known as the act of painting outdoors. Artists from this era also focused on emotion, passion, and sensation over reason and intellect.
Prominent Romantic painters include William Blake, whose poetry and images conveyed his disappointment in societal constraints. On the other hand, Henry Fuseli had investments in creating strange, macabre paintings that explored human psychology.
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