Art History. Painting Periods
Introduction
The paper aims to trace the development of painting through the following periods: baroque, neoclassicism, realism, impressionism, post-impressionism, cubism, geometric abstraction, and surrealism. They make up the history of painting and help to understand the stages of its development and why modern painting looks like it looks.
Baroque: (1600 - 1750)
Baroque was a characteristic of a style in art and architecture developed in Europe from the early 17th to mid-18th century. Baroque artwork combines dramatic compositions, beautiful details, and emotionally charged subject matter to give viewers as intense a visual experience as possible. Its original meaning – “irregular, contorted, grotesque”—is now largely superseded. It is generally agreed that the new style was born in Rome during the final years of the sixteenth century. Baroque Art is less complex, more realistic and more emotionally affecting than Mannerism. The “The Union of Earth and Water” by Rubens is a good example of Baroque style painting. Rubens shows off his skill at arranging several figures in a beautiful swirling composition while perfectly depicting each element of the painting—flowers, fruits, cloth, and flesh. The painting’s drama, movement, violence, exuberance, exaggeration, large scale, and strong contrast of light and dark are all characteristics of Baroque style, which is very different than the Neoclassicism.
Neoclassicism: (1750 - 1830)
Neoclassicism is a nineteenth century French art style and movement that originated as a reaction to the Baroque. This period gave rebirth to the art of ancient Rome and Greece and the Renaissance as an opposition to the ostentatious Baroque and Rococo art that preceded the movement. Neoclassicism emphasized rationality and the resurgence of tradition. Neoclassic artists used classical forms to express their ideas about courage, sacrifice, and love of country, and they incorporated classical styles and subjects, including columns,
The paper aims to trace the development of painting through the following periods: baroque, neoclassicism, realism, impressionism, post-impressionism, cubism, geometric abstraction, and surrealism. They make up the history of painting and help to understand the stages of its development and why modern painting looks like it looks.
Baroque: (1600 - 1750)
Baroque was a characteristic of a style in art and architecture developed in Europe from the early 17th to mid-18th century. Baroque artwork combines dramatic compositions, beautiful details, and emotionally charged subject matter to give viewers as intense a visual experience as possible. Its original meaning – “irregular, contorted, grotesque”—is now largely superseded. It is generally agreed that the new style was born in Rome during the final years of the sixteenth century. Baroque Art is less complex, more realistic and more emotionally affecting than Mannerism. The “The Union of Earth and Water” by Rubens is a good example of Baroque style painting. Rubens shows off his skill at arranging several figures in a beautiful swirling composition while perfectly depicting each element of the painting—flowers, fruits, cloth, and flesh. The painting’s drama, movement, violence, exuberance, exaggeration, large scale, and strong contrast of light and dark are all characteristics of Baroque style, which is very different than the Neoclassicism.
Neoclassicism: (1750 - 1830)
Neoclassicism is a nineteenth century French art style and movement that originated as a reaction to the Baroque. This period gave rebirth to the art of ancient Rome and Greece and the Renaissance as an opposition to the ostentatious Baroque and Rococo art that preceded the movement. Neoclassicism emphasized rationality and the resurgence of tradition. Neoclassic artists used classical forms to express their ideas about courage, sacrifice, and love of country, and they incorporated classical styles and subjects, including columns,