Muse of Art

  During the 18th and 19th century, our world was going through major changes. A growth spurt erupted fueled by huge advancements in manufacturing, transportation and other new technologies. Life was getting easier and suddenly artists found that they no longer required patrons to survive. Before this point, the vast majority of artists required financiers, but now they were free from patrons, free to do what they wished. No longer were artists stuck in the old ways where art was used only to tell a story, to be instructional, or to depict religious and mythical events. Thus it was that the modern art movement was born. This movement challenged the long held idea that art must depict the world as it is. Instead, modern artists embraced expression through color, non-traditional materials, and unique mediums and techniques. They didn’t create classical images, they created based on the things that affected them personally, subconsciously, and in everyday life. ( Citation ) ...

 Realism V.S. Impressionism  Romanticism, or the Romantic era, was ushered in by the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment was an intellectual period that emphasized reason, knowledge, freedom, and the separation of church and state. While the Enlightenment focused strongly on reason, Romanticism placed more emphasis on emotion and imagination. Realism and Impressionism are both offshoots of Romanticism.                                                              Edward Hopper Nighthawks  Edward Hopper was an American-born realist artist, born on July 22, 1882, and, unfortunately, passing away on May 15, 1967. He painted realistic depictions of urban scenes. Nighthawks (pictured above) is an oil-on-canvas piece created in 1942, depicting a diner on an empty street with large glass windows. Inside, a couple sits ...

                                                Neo-Classical art was a Western cultural movement and was a reaction to the French Rococo style, as the Rococo style was deemed sensuous and frivolous, while the Neo-Classical style had many paintings dealing with antiquity, moral virtue, and heroes, particularly those in ancient Rome and Greece.                                                                The Oath of the Horatii The Oath of the Horatii is a beautiful piece depicting a Roman legend, which I will touch on later. This painting was created by Jacques-Louis David and was completed in 1785. Fun fact: Did you know that David was a political propaganda painter and even served as court painter to Napole...

                                                                THE LAST SUPPER The Last Supper is an easily recognizable piece from the Italian Renaissance. This artwork was created between 1495 and 1498 and was a dry-wall painting using the fresco technique. This painting depicts the final meal between Jesus and His disciples before His betrayal and eventual crucifixion. "It portrays the dramatic scene described in several closely connected moments in the Gospels, including Matthew 26:21–28, in which Jesus declares that one of the Apostles will betray Him and later institutes the Eucharist." I greatly enjoy this piece. For me, dissecting and forming my own opinions and beliefs about what is happening in the picture is very enjoyable. As I mentioned before, this artwork uses the fresco technique and is a well-articulated repres...

                                                          The elevation of the cross "During the height of the Counter-Reformation, when the doctrines of the Eucharist were being questioned by Reformed Protestants and the eucharistic wars were being waged, Rubens’s painting serves as a powerful reminder that Christ is not just a spiritual entity but that his bodily sacrifice is the moment of salvation, echoing the Gospel of John." To me, this painting is beautiful, but it does show the brutality of the execution of Christ and the people that surrounded him. The point of the painting is to convey Christ's love through his sacrifice and the debt of sin being paid for humanity. It shows how Christ’s death pays for the weight of sin, and to me, that demonstrates his love. "Like the best of Rubens’s works, The Elevation of the Cross is filled with...

Devolved Parliament Art analysis This piece, titled Devolved Parliament by Banksy, is a 2009 oil on canvas work depicting politicians as chimpanzees in the British House of Commons. "It was first unveiled as part of the Banksy vs Bristol exhibit in 2009 and was lent to the Bristol Museum in March 2019, marking both the exhibit’s 10th anniversary and Britain’s original planned exit from the EU on 29 March." I enjoy this piece as, though you don’t have to be a British citizen to understand the tumultuous work of politicians and how they affect our everyday lives, this is probably my favorite Banksy piece because of the witty nature and nod to the state of politics. Even though this piece was released in 2009, it still rings true. Laboureau, S. (2022, September 18). Devolved parliament, 2009 - banksy explained . Banksy Explained -. https://banksyexplained.com/devolved-parliament-2009/