The Neoclassical Style Of Art
During the end of the 1750s a new style in painting and other art forms (including theater, literature, music and architecture) arose as an opposition to the decorative and sensual style of Rococo & Baroque. This new style emerged in Rome and popularly spread across Europe. It was a re-discovery of the classical elements in all forms of art and hence this new style came to be called Neoclassicism which stands as an influential art movement in the history of Western culture.
This cultural movement had a belief that art should express the ideal virtues and be powerful enough to civilize, reform and transform a society. It coincided with the 18th century Age of Enlightenment and writers, archaeologists, collectors, artists and sculptors wanted to infuse the Greco-Roman ideals in their art. While Rococo was known for its exaggerated ornamented details and asymmetrical patterns, the Neoclassical style was based on the principles of simplicity, symmetry, and mathematics, which were seen as virtues of the arts in Ancient Greece and Rome. The theories and writings by German scholar Johann Joachim Winckelmann were important in shaping this new movement where he has defined and distinguished art forms created by both the Greek and Romans. Besides archaeological excavations of the buried Roman cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii were also a reason why the scholars and artists developed interest in reviving the classical past. The postures, proportions and compositions used in paintings were inspired from the Renaissance antiquity and represented political and social scenarios that lead to the French revolution.
Some of the popular artists were Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, Jacques-Louis David, Angelica Kauffman, Antonio Canova, Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, John William Godward, William-Adolphe Bouguereau, and Benjamin West.
Neoclassicism sculptures also reflect ideologies of Hellenistic sculptures where the technical skill, balance and form were more important than the individualism of the artist. The subjects were drawn from mythology and marble was used as a material for smooth contouring and tactile depictions. The figures were highly idealized, showing graceful body movements and often sculpted in a life size scale like their ancient inspirations. While Jacques-Louis David and Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres became the pioneers of Neoclassical painting, an Italian painter and sculptor named Antonio Canova became popular later on for his elegant sculptural forms. Other notable sculptors working during this period were Johan Tobias Sergel, Jean-Antoine Houdon, John Flaxman, Bertel Thorvaldsen and Johann Gottfried Schadow.
Neoclassicist painters and sculptors brought back the preceding creations of Greek & Roman civilization that were mostly lost. The excavations from the ruins of these ancient civilizations triggered artists to reflect the same ideologies and skills in their artworks. Neoclassicism continued to have its influence till the 19th century and a second phase called Empire style emerged which was visible in the architecture of Paris and Napoleonic era.
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