Jacques-Louis David epitomised Neoclassicism through his vibrant paintings that captured both revolution’s passion and royalty’s pomp. One such work by him, Death of Marat (1793), depicted the horrific bathtub killing of one of France’s revolutionary leaders during that period.
At that point in history, painting had been strictly controlled by academy rules; but Romantic artists like Delacroix shocked and shocked the establishment with their vivid depictions of sexuality and exoticism.
Romanticism
At this time, a literary movement called Romanticism emerged that put greater emphasis on individualism, emotions and imagination – an opposite approach from that advocated by Neoclassicism, which relied upon rationalist thought and classical allegory for its ideology. Jean-Jacques Rousseau led this literary movement that promoted his “back-to-Eden” philosophy.
Artists took note of this trend by rejecting neoclassical conventions in painting and sculpture and creating paintings with more authentic representations of reality on canvas; thus creating the style known as Realism.
Realist art emerged during Napoleon’s war campaigns, whereby artists needed to glorify his victories as victory was celebrated through battle scenes. Unfortunately this left no room for classical allegory and works like those by Antoine-Jean Gros could never completely transcend military destruction and death.
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism was characterized by the revival of classical ideals in architecture, sculpture and painting. Neoclassical artists like Jacques-Louis David and Jean-Auguste Dominique Ingres sought ideal grace when depicting nudes or figures while taking moral themes from Roman history as their sources for their artworks.
Like Winckelmann in 17th-century theory, Neoclassical artists encouraged imitation of ancient art as a means to discover its real beauty and spirit; but imitative works may become too dead and formal to convey any persuasive eloquence.
Antonio Canova and Bertel Thorvaldsen epitomized Neoclassical sculpture at its best, carving numerous ambitious life-size figures and groups which captured the lightness and grace of Classical art. A renewed interest in Ancient Greece and Rome coupled with Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt inspired American artists to portray Cleopatra, pyramids, and Sphinx motifs in Neoclassical art during this era.
Neo-Renaissance
Neoclassical art moved beyond both Rococo’s excesses and Roc-de-Croque’s “folly,” looking instead for noble themes of public virtue and personal sacrifice from Classical history. This trend fit well with the spirit of conformity and order that had underpinned France’s Revolution; pro-revolutionary Jacques-Louis David demonstrated this new trend by painting Marat’s death resembling classical paintings.
Neo-Renaissance architecture combined elements from Renaissance architecture with rusticated masonry and quoins, arches framing windows or doors, pediments and entablatures, as well as caryatid carving. Furthermore, Neo-Renaissance was greatly impacted by Claude Lorrain’s 1830s work which displayed Italian Primitives.
Style was evident in Protestant churches such as Reformed Nieuwe Kerk in Scheveningen and domestic buildings such as Charles Barry’s designs for Mentmore Towers (1829-1832).
Baroque
Baroque art and architecture was an eye-catching style known for its dramatic flair and use of chiaroscuro (light-dark). This dramatic style used paintings to highlight emotion and movement as well as create depth; new themes such as realism also emerged at this time, giving the impression of reality and making this trend popular among church leaders, absolute rulers, aristocracy members and those in power to express their message or exert influence over society.
An important characteristic of Baroque art was its use of ornately gilded sculpture and ornamentation to create striking elements, in stark contrast with more subdued Renaissance styles.
The Baroque period saw great interest in uniting musical styles from across countries, with composers like Monteverdi, Vivaldi, Bach, Handel and Lully all writing pieces with diverse national influences and styles that combined highly contrapuntal textures. Furthermore, theatre flourished both in France and Spain during this time; Corneille Racine Moliere among them were all prolific playwrights during this period.