Romantic Art Assessment

 Romanticism Vs. Realism 

    Welcome back to my blog! After diving into the Romantic era, I've decided to compare the stylings of Romanticism art and Realism art since they're both very influential and fascinating to study. I feel like Romanticism is very much my type of art. I've mentioned before that I'm highly drawn to artwork involving green, flourishing nature with calm or rushing waters. I've noticed that there are a lot of paintings in the Romanticism category that use dreamy, lush landscapes and nature, which I desire. So far, the work I've seen in Realism is incredibly striking and straightforward.. yet slightly monotonous for my taste. 

Romanticism Artwork - The Hudson River School

    The Romantic era was the movement that rejected the formality of Neoclassicism and, instead, embraced emotion. This movement emphasized the sublimity and beauty of nature, and dominated American art during this period, especially the untamed American West that was glorified in monumental landscapes by artists of the Hudson River School. The Hudson River School was a mid-18th to 19th century American art movement embodied by a group of landscape painters whose aesthetic vision came to define romanticism in this country. The artists of this school also influenced the creation of our first national parks, with masterpieces of Yellowstone and Yosemite that persuaded Congress to establish the very first protections for our most spectacular wild places. I chose artwork from two of the artists of this school, Thomas Moran and Thomas Cole. 

Rainbow over the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

    Rainbow over the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone was painted by Thomas Moran in 1900 with oil on a canvas. It is currently on display at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Moran was a North American painter and one of the founders of the Hudson River School. Moran steeped in the traditions of European Romantic painting, but he also believed that American art needed to find its own, native subject-matter and style. In Rainbow over the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, I see large rock formations, with bushy, tall trees standing on top of the canyon, shadows casting upon the flat surfaces, and a bright rainbow showered over the canyon. The colors used for this painting are shades of beige, orange-y soft red, hunter green, soft white, black, and yellow, green, and red for the rainbow. The shapes used to depict the crevices of the canyon are sharp, jagged, and pointed edges and peaks. These significant shapes make me feel as if I'm standing at the bottom of this canyon, viewing it as if I was actually there in that moment. The swift, wispy strokes of the paint give me the illusion of wind blowing through the canyon. The use of the colors like beige and soft white make it look like the sun is shining a light down upon the canyon, while also casting a bright rainbow through the sultry clouds. The use of black in this painting is very functional. It helps give me the illusion that I'm walking through the shaded, dark canyon, poking through trees and shadow-y crevices until I reach an opening where I find this magnificent view. I really enjoy this painting, it makes me feel peaceful and centered, yet adventurous and wild. I could 100% see myself owning this in my house, maybe surrounding hanging succulent plants and leafy garland. 

                                      

The Titan's Goblet 

    The Titan's Goblet was painted by Thomas Cole in 1833 with oil on a canvas. Cole was a North American landscape painter and one of the founders of the Hudson River School. During the winter of 1835, Cole stayed in Catskills, where he began to express strong views concerning the impact of industrial development and its negative consequences for the wild beauty of the Catskills landscapes that were the source of inspiration for his work. The Titan's Goblet is probably my favorite painting I've studied so far during this course and I'm really excited to share with you all. In this painting, I see a vast landscape of lush, green fields, tall mountains, a sultry sky with a burning sun, calm waters, and a giant goblet standing in main focus. The colors used for this painting includes greens, yellow, orange, subtle reds, light blue, soft white, and light grays. The shapes used are one of my favorite aspects of this. I see circular, curved lines for the goblet, jagged, pointed edges for the landscape of mountains and rocks, curved, wispy lines for the flowing of water out of the goblet, and shapes of a small town at the bottom of the goblet, with what appears to be ships floating in the water of the goblet. I believe they're tiny ships because of the shape of the soft white sails poking up through the air. This is an incredibly dreamy painting that I find so aesthetically pleasing to the eye. The subtle, overflowing light blue water from the goblet give me the illusion of wind softly blowing. The water from the goblet is forming a secretive waterfall flowing next to the small city that resides tucked below the goblet. The use of green provides lush, grassy fields and bushes surrounding the goblet and beyond. There are hints of red used to depict the clay-like surfaces of the grassy rocks below the goblet (lower left). The jagged, rough, light grey peaks of the mountains in the distance provide a sense of eeriness, untouched, mysterious landscape. The yellow and orange hues of the soft sky provide the essence of a setting sun over the scene. This is an incredibly dreamy painting that I find so aesthetically pleasing to the eye. It's almost everything I would want in painting, and I WANT to own this in my house some day. I feel as if this painting is peak Romanticism, as it holds a huge fantasy, daydream theme. 

Realism Artwork

    Realism is recognized as the first modern movement of art. Realism was a result of multiple events: the anti-Romantic movement in Germany, the rise of journalism, and the advent of photography. Each inspired a new interest in accurately capturing everyday life. This attention to accuracy is evident in art produced during the movement, which featured detailed, life-like depictions of subject matter. To further dive into the artwork of this style, I chose paintings from Jules Breton and Jean-Francois Millet. 

Song of the Lark 

    Song of the Lark was painted by Jules Breton in 1884 with oil on a canvas. Breton was a 19th century French painter who was heavily influenced by the French countryside and rustic lifestyle. In this painting, I see a young woman standing in focus, working on a grassy farm, with a giant, setting sun behind her. She's seen holding a sharp garden tool (bare with me, I'm not familiar with the name of this and I tried to research to find out what she's holding, but no luck), dressed in loose, comfortable clothing, a headscarf holding back her hair, and walking barefoot among the field. The colors used in this painting include brown, fiery red, orange, vibrant and also hunter greens, soft white, blue, and a creamy tan for her skin color. The shapes used in this painting include a long, curved lines of the tool she's holding, curved and soft lines for her body, ruffled and crisped lines and edges for her clothing, triangular roofs of the houses in the background, and round, shaggy shapes of the grass, plants, and trees. The facial expression the woman is giving is sort of curious, as if he spotted something in the sky. Her body language and the dirt smears on her give off the illusion that she's been working all day and into dusk, so I assume she's very exhausted and fatigued. She's the only one standing among this great farm, so loneliness and the desire for interaction, but also rest, is the attitude I perceive from this painting. I imagine her spotting the bird soaring through the sky behind her, maybe even getting low enough to spot the young woman gazing at it. I believe this might be the only genuine interaction she's had all day. A curious little bird visiting the curious, lonely young woman. The setting sun in the background is slowly making its way down, but still bright and burning. I love the use of vibrant red in this overall soft colored painting. I also like the pop of blue in her clothing as well, it makes her look not too peasant-like. A soft orange-y glow is used for the setting sky, which really provides a sense of peace and relief in this painting. Maybe the setting sun marks the end of her long, hard work day. Although the colors used for this painting are soft and pleasing, I wouldn't own this in my house. This painting makes me feel pretty lonely.

The Sheepfold, Moonlight 

    The Sheepfold, Moonlight was painted by Jean-Francois Millet from 1856-1860 with oil on a canvas. Renowned for his Realist subject matter, Jean-Francois Millet was moved by social injustice to paint peasants and agricultural laborers, capturing both the poverty and dignity of rural French life. In this painting, I see a big group of sheep, a shepherd with his herding dog, a small hut, a thin log fence, a bright moon low in the sky, and a group of small clouds hanging above. The colors used in this painting are very minimum, but they include a soft white, black, a very deep, dark brown, and a subtle blue. The shapes used in this painting really help envision what we're looking at in this dark piece. The shapes include round and puffy shapes of the sheep, long, uneven lines for the logs of the fence, a triangular rooftop, round, soft mounds for the clouds, a circular, waxing phase of the moon, curved and hard lines for the shepherd and his dog, and a pointed, thin, long line for his stick. The only essence of light provided for this shadow-y painting is given off from the moon. Because the moon is so bright and big, I almost want to think that was Millet's subtle use of little Romanticism in this painting. The moon holds a soft white color, the same color as the herded sheep below. The color black is used to portray a dark, shadowing night. The hut appears to be a deep, dark brown color, but it's hard to tell. Even though the sky is dark, the moon enlightens a soft, subtle blue glow. The shepherd is herding his big group of sheep into their fenced pen, probably because it's time for everyone to settle down for the night and get some rest. Besides the shepherd having the company of his sheep and herding dog, he appears to be very alone out there. There is no bright color of light coming from the hut, which makes me believe that there isn't anyone inside waiting for him to finish up and to come have dinner together. I think it's just him and his loyal dog that reside out in the middle-of-nowhere farm. Like the last painting I shared, this one also gives me the feeling of loneliness. It's not very calming for me, because I'm sure taking care of a hundred(?) sheep must be exhausting, and to share your down time with only your lonesome self and herding dog must not be very appeasing. The only attitude I take away from this painting is isolation, long days and nights, and incompleteness. I wouldn't own this painting in my house. 

Reflection 

    Realism and Romanticism vary in terms of visual goals and political agenda. Both movements evolved and shaped the affairs of state. Similarly to how Romanticism flowered during the royal restoration of Napoleon Bonaparte’s reign from 1815 to 1830, Realism gained political fervor during the Revolution of 1848. Each movement led social change, but differed in terms of compositional goals. While Romanticism glamorized foreign lands and idealistic landscape, Realism depicted the struggles of the working class and Europe’s socio-economic inequality. Both styles have extreme importance in literary movements and have showed the transition of history has an influence on the arts. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the paintings I shared on Romanticism vs. Realism.

From, Chandler

Sources

"Rainbow over the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone" The Smithsonian American Art Museum. American Art, 2020. https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/rainbow-over-grand-canyon-yellowstone-17862 

"The Titan's Goblet" The Met 150. The Met Museum, 2020. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/10499

"Artworks and Artists of Realism" Realism Artworks. The Art Story, 2020. https://www.theartstory.org/movement/realism/artworks/#pnt_6 

"Jean-Francois Millet" Jean-Francois Millet Artworks. The Art Story, 2020. https://www.theartstory.org/artist/millet-jean-francois/artworks/#pnt_5 

"Romantic Style" Visual Arts in the Romantic Era. Lisa Kljaich, April 24, 2009. https://art200.community.uaf.edu/2009/04/24/03-visual-arts-3/ 

"Realist Style" Visual Arts in the Romantic Era. Lisa Kljaich, April 24, 2009. https://art200.community.uaf.edu/2009/04/24/03-visual-arts-3/