Francois Boucher in Rococo Art

               Of all of the eighteenth century artists noted in our textbook, I was most intrigued by the French artist, Francois Boucher. He lived from 1703 to 1730 during the Rococo period, when Parisian artists began to reject some of the strict Baroque elements of art after the French court was moved from Versaille to Paris. The Rococo style consisted of fanciful decorative arts of gold and painting combined curves and pastel colors for a more graceful and flowingly asymmetrical composition. Boucher took these ideas and incorporated them into his paintings of romanticized pastorals, which were landscapes with shepherds and shepherdesses.  Not only did he paint, but he was one of the most well-known artists of the decorative arts in Europe because of his exquisite tapestries and porcelain. Boucher was talented with several mediums and because of his popularity, had many prints distributed on an international level. During this time, artists were not simply creating works for a single patron; rather the artwork was sold to those of the higher middle class established by the industrial revolution.

                Although Francois Boucher was one of the most famous artists of the eighteenth century, he still had critics. Denis Diderot, for example, was a writer who grew tired of Boucher’s pastorals and repetitive color palette, but praised him for having the talent of having such a magical quality to his work.  One painting called Diana Leaving her Bath has such a quality. I find the subject matter of this piece very interesting because of the way he depicted Diana’s story. She is obviously a skilled huntress roaming around in this vast landscape of eerie and dark woods, yet she is so beautiful and idealized. Her glowing skin and luminous presence makes this painting seem to be a snapshot of a real event that was captured in an instant before anyone could see.  I am attracted to the elegance and subtle variations of warm and cool colors (mostly blues and pinks), for which he was notorious for. Typically, I find softer color palettes boring, but I love the way Boucher exaggerates the blues in his shadows and lightens up women’s flesh as if she’s a miracle.

Boucher worked in Italy in 1728 where he was fascinated by Italian Baroque painters.  His return to Paris in 1730 was when he began working with large scale paintings of mythological scenes, one of which he completed in 1742: Diana Leaving her Bath. This piece describes the goddess Diana relaxing after a day’s hunt. The dead birds and rabbit piled adjacent to her bow suggest that she shot them herself. A nymph waits at the goddess’s side to aid her bathing; this shows that Diana was a superior figure. Boucher’s influence by baroque art is evident with his depiction of the dog on the left side of the work. The position of the dog does not give the viewer a pleasant view, in fact it is a little unexpected and indiscrete. Another element of baroque art in this piece is shown with the blue drapery behind Diana. It swoops down underneath her and the viewer’s eye travels down her crossed legs in a rhythmic diagonal. This blue drapery also seems to act as a “curtain” to represent a figure of importance, also seen in baroque art. The work of Francois Boucher is the epitome of Rococo art, however towards the end of the eighteenth century, Neoclassicism cut him out of the picture with  the renewing style of simplicity and harmony.

               

Bibliography:

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/bouc/hd_bouc.htm

http://www.jstor.org/pss/25159852

Michelangelo V Bernini

            Artistic style has evolved over time while trends carried on through generations of creativity. The high Renaissance, for example, explored classicism in art and embraced human anatomy beginning a style called humanism. This carried over into a later period known as the Southern Baroque style. Two works of art that have the same subject matter but were created by different artists from each time period are the sculptures of David by Michelangelo of the Renaissance and Bernini of the Baroque time.   

            Firstly, Michelangelo’s David was executed in a time of perfection. Artists like him living in the high renaissance celebrated the human body and idealized figures portrayed in art. With this version of David, the viewer gets a real sense of naturalism by Michelangelo’s use of “contraposto”. This exaggerated shift of weight was popular during this time to create a more naturalistic feel in the work. Despite this true to life image, David was idealized and his body type makes the piece seem less realistic. On the other hand, David was a heroic biblical figure and is therefore being celebrated and praised as an ideal man. His body looks hard to the touch not because of the marble that it was carved from, but from the muscles that Michelangelo sculpted; his veins are even visible in his arms. This depiction of David is completely nude and shows no embarrassment or attempt to hide himself from the viewer. His hair is stylized into little perfect locks of hair. His stance gives the impression that defeating Goliath was an easy task and now he is simply soaking up the glory. All of this is evidence of idealism being paired with naturalism to create a more harmonious composition.    

            Bernini’s David on the other hand, expresses something a bit more dramatic. Like Bernini, artists of the Southern Baroque period drew attention to movement and drama in their works. He still kept the classical idealism and mythological background; however he captured these styles and images at the height of the action. Rather than standing tall, his David is depicted in the action of hurling his weapon over his shoulder to destroy Goliath. There is so much movement emphasized in this sculpture and is evident by the diagonals created by David’s arms, legs and the rope between his hands. Bernini has drawn the viewer into David’s environment by establishing the curiosity of wanting to look at the sculpture from all angles. One of the biggest differences in Bernini’s David as opposed to Michelangelo’s is that Bernini placed a piece of drapery over David’s genitals. This is important because during this time of the catholic counter-reformation, it was necessary to conceal nudity in art to encourage decency. Most art created at this time served the sole purposes of instructing the faithful and realigning those with the Catholic Church by stirring an emotional response from the work. Bernini made this sculpture of David for the nephew of Pope Paul V which was appropriate because David was a heroic and influential biblical figure. Although this depiction of David is also stylized in terms of his figure and hair, his facial expression is something that really contrasts that of Michelangelo’s version. It is said that Bernini used himself as a reference for this sculpture, which gives it a more dramatic feel because of the expression he used. Instead of the serene, lost-in-thought expression that the former David wore, the latter is portraying his aggression and fear through his facial expression, making it all the more dramatic.

            These are two fantastic sculptures by two very talented artists and it is interesting to see how the same figure can be translated two different ways in different art movements.

Sixteenth Century Art in Northern Europe

Whilst southern Europe was emerging with the new Mannerist art movement, northern Europe began rebelling Protestantism with its own unique styles. However, one of the most famous artists of this time was a man from Germany named Albrecht Dürer and he was inspired by Italian painting and incorporated some of the southern ideas into his work. Unlike other Northern European countries, Germany did not hold a guild system for artists. Because of this, Dürer was able to work independently to gain fame of his marvelous talent.    

            In his engraving Adam and Eve, Dürer promotes several artistic techniques that were popular in northern and southern Europe. For example, one of the characteristics of this work that is a trademark of Italian art is the idealism of the human form. Typically, northern art during this time moved away from the perfect, stylized bodies that were seen more in the south. In this piece, however, Dürer utilizes this ideal form with Adam and Eve although instead of elongating them as seen in Italian mannerist art, he used correct and exact human proportions. This is a sign that humanism was still a big part of art in the south, especially with the contraposto stance that he uses. Another characteristic that shows Italian influence is the stylized hair of Adam and Eve. Eve’s hair appears to be blown back in the wind in perfectly detailed wavy locks. Another distinction that I noticed about this work is that the two figures are shown in profile (at least their heads are) which is a similar style used during the fifteenth century in Italy when portraiture became popular. With his own self-portraits, Düer used the three quarter view and the frontal view, so I am curious as to why he chose to portray Adam and Eve in profile.       

            Dürer integrated this southern style into more northern features. In Adam and Eve, he displays northern ideas with careful attention to detail and texture. The way he created the soft flesh of the two figures as opposed to the rough tree bark is a perfect example of what was popular in northern art. Also, northerners tended to keep similar ideas used in medieval times to capture biblical events in a more contemporary environment. This is portrayed with the animals depicted in the foreground of this work. Four of the animals represent the four medieval temperaments: phlegm, yellow bile, black bile and blood. These animals together are also a sign of balance, which is something that southern artists avoided. Another aspect that represents northern art is the use of symbols. Besides the four temperaments, there are various other symbols such as the parrot which represents the Virgin Mary. It is an implication that Mary is going to bring Christ into the world and reverse the effects of sin that Eve has brought on Earth. Another symbol here is the goat standing on the very top of the mountain in the background. The goat is carefully balancing, looking as if it is about to fall off. This is a representation of the fall of Adam and Eve. They are about to give into temptation and take the fruit of the tree, and therefore become unholy.        

            Along with many other works by Dürer, this piece is a classic example of European art and he is still praised to this day for his astounding work. Some even said that he was immortal. He was a well-educated artist who was aware of his talent and assumed the divine power as an artist. The earlier invention of the printing press is one reason why Dürer became so popular. His work was duplicated and copied, making it more affordable for people all over the world to buy.   

Mannerism During the Late Renaissance

Mannerism arose during the late Renaissance, first started in Italy and then traveled into Northern Europe. This period was mainly influenced by the Italians’ reaction of insecurity about Protestantism. They felt threatened while the northern Catholics were not as affected. Mannerism was a move away from harmony and balance which turned into uncomfortable, awkward and unbalanced compositions.  For my comparative analysis, I will discuss two mannerist paintings Parmigianino’s Madonna with the Long Neck and Bronzino’s Allegory with Venus and Cupid.

The painting Madonna with the Long Neck by Parmigianino is a great example of some mannerist art. One of the biggest signs of mannerism is that both the Madonna and the child are extremely elongated. The Madonna’s legs, her arms, her neck, nose, and even fingers are all longer than the normal human. The child is also laying on her in a strange position. It almost seems as if he is going to fall right onto the floor. The way the Madonna is just barely holding him by the neck and shoulders looks very unpleasing. Even the figure on the left is twisting in an uncomfortable way, and their leg is elongated as well. The single pillar in the background isn’t supporting anything. The viewer has no sense of there being a roof or ceiling; the pillar doesn’t meet up with anything. It doesn’t make any sense. Perhaps this painting is meant to create discomfort in looking upon protestant figures.

Similarly, Allegory with Venus and Cupid by Bronzino is full of mannerist characteristics and is perhaps the most extreme of them all. First of all, the image itself is a bit unsettling. This explicit incest relationship between mother and son is a bit disturbing. Cupid touches the Venus’s breast while her tongue slips out as he kisses her. The fact that both of their eyes are open makes the image all the more inappropriate. Another characteristic is the positions that both Venus and Cupid are posed in. Cupid seems to be a little elongated and is bending down and oddly twisting and embracing Venus. His farthest leg (his left) is still visible and appears to be resting on the pink pillow, but not all of his weight is on that left leg so that cannot be. The same goes for Venus. We cannot tell whether her legs are resting or if she is holding herself up by her knees. Her torso is angled and twisted in a painful looking way and her left arm hangs down holding the golden apple of discord. The child to the right is leading them on running up to throw rose petals at them. This character is known as Folly, or jest. The two masks down at the bottom right corner reinforce the deception portrayed in this image while the dove on the left takes form of the bottom of Cupid’s foot without even touching it. The background is just as un-peaceful. On the right, behind Folly, is a serpent-like creature with the head of a little girl staring blankly with a slight smile. She is twisting her right arm back behind her to push her tail with a stinger back. She had been referred to as Fraud and Pleasure. During the Renaissance, paintings were covered by curtains to temporarily conceal them. We see the same things repeated here where Time (on the right) and Truth (on the left) pull back the curtain to reveal such a horrid and unsettling moment.

Both of these works are of different subject matter but still give off a sense of awkwardness and hold unrealistic characteristics. Because these paintings are the outcome of mannerism, they do not make any sense and are difficult to understand. It was like a form of surrealism during the late renaissance.