Avant-Garde

I never knew what it meant for something to be “avant-garde.” After reading about it, I realized that avant-garde art refers to artists or artworks that are made beyond what was known as a norm. Artists that want to express themselves in unique ways, came up with the most amazing artworks known. Unlike those artists that only followed the norms of the artistic world to do their artworks. 

I really enjoy art that is extreme in appearance and makes one stop and look at it for a while to try to figure out what exactly is going on in that painting or sculpture, which had captured their attention. Many artist that we have learned about in previous art history classes, have made artworks that I would call avant-garde. Those artworks are so unique in appearance that you cannot help but be amazed at their appearance and structure. Abstract art is a great example of avant-garde. Also, I think that Mannerism artworks could be avant-garde because of disproportional their humans were in their paintings and how unrealistic the colors were, but at the same time, I think that this is what made art so interesting and unique. Baroque art was overly dramatic, which is also something that I think could be categorized as avant-garde art.

Avant-garde art is very beautiful to me. I would love to learn about more artworks that are strange in appearance and cause the viewer to stop in their tracks and get a little puzzled over what they see. It is very cool when art is made outside the safe boundaries and norms that are in set in some societies. Bold and extreme art is something that every artist should strive for in making. 

Unique Mannerism and Beautiful Rococo Art

This quarter, I really enjoyed learning about the artworks from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. My favorite Baroque art was in the Rococo style. Some artworks during the Renaissance period did not interest me as much as others. For example, I was more drawn to the Mannerism style of art in Florence in Rome than I was to the High Renaissance art in southern Italy. I enjoyed the Mannerism art because of it's unique style to distort and manipulate accepted formal conventions, unlike High Renaissance artworks which depicted balance, idealism and lifelike references. Some of the Mannerist style paintings which I have enjoyed learning about are; Pontormo's Entombment and Parmigianino's  Madonna With The Long Neck.

Entombment is made of oil and tempera paint on wood. The composition of Entombment is random and scattered, with no definite shape. It seems like all of the figures in this painting, especially the man in the front, are set in very complex and uncomfortable positions that don't seem humanly possible, and look like they're about to fall out of the painting. The the expressions on the faces of every person depicted in this painting are sad, but dreamy, as if those people are waiting for something big to happen. I also liked this painting because of the brightly contrasting colors that were used to create it. It is very interesting to see people depicted in such an interesting style which catches the viewers eye and makes the viewer take a step backwards, away from the painting, so the figures in the painting don't land on him.


Madonna With The Long Neck was also made with oil on wood. Since it was the style of Mannerism, this painting is also very unrealistic and the figures of the figures are disproportional. When I looked at this painting for the first time, the first thing that I noticed is the sleeping baby in  Madonnas arms, which is way too big to be a baby when compared to the other figures also in the painting. Madonnas huge thighs were the next thing that I noticed and the fact that they don't look like they belong to the same person with a relatively small head, skinny fingers, and a long neck. Madonnas "sitting" position, with no chair underneath her, adds to the weirdness and unrealistic feel of the whole composition. 

Both of the paintings are perfect examples of the Mannerist style, which I enjoyed mostly because of the visual detail in them. They are very unrealistic, and contain figures in humanly impossible poses with disproportional bodies. These paintings are so far from realism and idealism that they make a viewer stop, look at them, and try to figure out what about the paintings is different and what is wrong with the way these people are painted.


The Baroque period introduced us to its own beautiful artworks which we haven't come across during the Renaissance period. I specifically liked the Rococo style and the artworks of Jean-Honore Fragonard. Fragonard's The Swing was intended to be sensually explicit. The subject of The Swing is a pretty young girl on a swing. Behind the girl, obscured by the shadow of the bushes, is an elderly bishop who is pushing her swing. In front of the girl is her lover, who is waiting in anticipation as the swing will be above him so that he may catch a glimpse beneath the girls skirts. The girl does not look shy at all. She even tosses one foot a little higher, which caused the shoe to fly off and at the same time, offering a better view to her lover, as the swing approaches him. The whole scene is somewhat humorous because it is obvious that the young man is enjoying the view, and yet he mockingly raises his hat in front of his face as if trying to shield his eyes from the view ahead. I enjoyed the Rococo artwork made by Fragonard because of the way everything in the image ties together to make one big scene filled with "anticipation and desire, as well as it maintains a sense of humor".

Jean-Honore Fragonard: The Musical Contest

Jean-Honore Fragonard, (1732-1806), was a noteworthy master of French Rococo painting. In 1752, Fragonard won a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy. His clients were mainly of aristocratic background and Fragonard painted and decorated interiors to suite their taste. The Swing is one of my favorite paintings that he has made in 1767. Another beautiful painting that Fragonard made earlier, in 1754 is called The Musical Contest. The Musical Contest is depicted in oil on a 62 x 74 cm canvas.

The Musical Contest takes place in a garden with a stone urn and a decoratively carved fountain on one side. The garden is filled with lush foliage that can be seen throughout the painting. In the center of the painting, we can see "a beautiful and elegantly dressed young girl, holding a parasol, who is depicted at the moment of choice between two prospective suitors." Both of the suitors are attempting to win the girls affection through their skills as musicians. The young man on her left, holding a flute in his hand, tries to get the girls attention by grasping her around the waist. To the girl’s right, another suitor gazes adoringly at her, while playing on his musette. The musette was popular between the patrons at the time the painting was made and Fragonard chose it to be the musical instrument in this narrative. The girls' right hand is stretched out above the young man below her and it appears that she is about to place the garland of pink flowers on his head. Her expression is that of a person that is confused before making a very important decision in her life. She looks like she is debating and weighing each suitor in her mind to see which one she likes most.

In The Musical Contest the light, falling from the top left corner of the painting, illuminates the white flesh of the girls breasts, propositioning an image of unrestrained sensuality. "In his almost prying representation of young lovers, Fragonard follows the precedent set by Antoine Watteau (1684-1721), who established the Rococo genre of the fête galante, a theatrical depiction of love in an arcadian setting." The theatricality of Fragonard’s subject is evident in the sweeping gestures of the female figure and the carefully arranged composition which draws our eye towards her. 


Works Cited:
http://www.wallacecollection.org/whatson/treasure/11

David v. David

The Baroque period of the seventeenth century had both, incorporated as well as rejected Renaissance ideals into their art. Although it still focused on making idealized, natural, and humanistic artworks, Baroque art was also made in a way to deliberately bring out intense emotional responses from the viewers. The lighting, rich visual colors, composition and diagonal movement in space, are some of the most evident details telling us about the intent of the artwork. The art was more dramatic and moving than Classical art. We can see the difference of art from two different eras in the difference between two statues of David. One of the statues was made in 1501 by Michelangelo, and the other David statue was made in 1623 by Gianlorenzo Bernini.

Michelangelo's David statue is that of a strong, confident young man. In its muscular nudity, this David embodies the antique ideal of the athletic male nude. Being in a relaxed pose with a slingshot over his shoulder, the concentrated gaze of David tells us of the emotional part of the figure. Michelangelo's David knits his brow and is staring into space, seemingly preparing himself psychologically for the battle ahead of him. This David statue is very peaceful to look at and it feels like the strongest emotion that it can bring out in a viewer is curiosity.

Gianlorenzo Bernini's David was made with a different type of three-dimensional composition that seems to be forcefully thrust into a viewers space. This young hero is bent at the waist and twists far to one side ready to throw the rock at Goliath. Unlike Michelangelo's preoccupied young man contemplating the task ahead of him, Bernini's more mature David, with his lean, athletic body, tightly clenched mouth, and straining muscles, is all about tension, action and determination." (Stockstad p.716) By creating a twisting figure caught in movement, Bernini incorporates the surrounding space within his composition, making the viewer almost feel the presence of an unseen attacker behind them.  This makes the viewer become part of the action scene rather than just an observer and can bring out the emotion of fear.

By comparing the two figures of David, we can see the difference of the Classical art and Baroque art. Both statues are the ideal of male form in a natural setting rather than posed, but at the same time, each statue shows us a very different approach to the situation. Michelangelo's David is all about confidence, focus and controlled emotion. In contrast, Bernini's David is all about dramatic action and determination. These are just some of the differences in the statues that enables us to tell that they are both from different artistic periods.

Art of Albrecht Dürer

Albrecht Dürer's artworks are known for having some kind of religious scene depicted in them. A lot of the style in his works was impacted by Italian art from the Renaissance Period. One of Dürer's art works that I wanted to discuss is called  Self-Portrait, painted oil on wood panel in 1500. The portrait is of Dürer himself at age 28.

The first thing that I noticed when looking at this portrait, is the striking resemblance that it has to earlier paintings of Christ. It was popular for artists at that time to paint images of themselves, exactly as they were. Dürer on the other hand, made some alterations to this image so that it would more closely resemble the stories of Christ's physical appearance. He had changed the hair color and painted himself in a straightforward frontal pose, a pose that was popular for depicting the image of Christ in Northern Europe. This Self-Portrait and it's resemblance to the Christ paintings is a way in which Dürer shows the viewer that artists are also "learned and creative geniuses, perhaps God-like, not laboring craftsman." (p. 677 Stockstad)

Before the completion of Self-Portrait, Dürer had traveled to Italy and encountered many new artists. Perhaps that is why his painting has that feel of Italian art. First of all, we notice that the painting is made in a triangular composition, which was popular with High Renaissance art. We can also see the Northern European style in the many different textures of the painting. The soft finish of the human flesh seems like it was the focal point of the painting. The wetness of the eyes, glistening in the light, look like it can be felt when touching the painting. The dismal softness of the clothes, look very rich and royal, which I assume is very soft. Lastly, the tangible quality of his hair is very defined and encourages the viewer to "feel" it. In fact, all of the textures in this painting could be felt at the same time as they are being looked at. Everything looks so realistic.

The two main parts of the portrait that seem to stand out the most, are the artists hand, and the face because of the soft glow of light on them. The reason why the artist might have emphasized these two body parts could be because they were the two things that gave him fame and he was most proud of. The craftiness of his hands to do such amazing artworks, working together with the brilliance of his mind to come up with such ideas and to make them become visual and realistic.

Late Renaissance Art

The Mannerist paitings are unique in their style, they are "distortions of accepted formal convention." (p. 660) Its a style of art that is made to look artificial, not realistic. With the passing of Rafael, many new artists emerged into the light. I will talk about one artwork of Jacopo da Pontormo and compare it to a painting made by Parmigianino.
Pontoromo's "Entombment" was completed in 1528. It is made of oil and tempera paint on wood. "The image, with its dark ground and gray sky, gives us no sense of location, and barely any grounding for the figures that it holds." (p. 662) The earlier Renaissance paintings were made according to the pyramid or triangular shape, which gave them a type of balance and order. On the contrary, the composition of "Entombment", is rather random and scattered, with no definite shape. Some of the figures, especially the man in the front, are set in very complex positions that don't seem humanly possible, and look like they're about to fall out of the painting. There are other people through out the painting that also have these weird poses that look very uncomfortable, like standing on their tiptoes. Another thing about this painting that makes it very much Mannerist, is the the expressions on the peoples faces. Every person depicted in this painting has a somewhat sad, but dreamy, look on their face, as if they're waiting for something big to happen. The colors used to make this painting are very unnatural as well. For example, the man in the front that is holding Christ, has a very pink back, but, at the same time, he has a bright blue stomach. These are not realistic colors of human skin.
Another painting made in the Mannerist style is "Madonna with the Long Neck". It is also oil on wood, made in 1540 by Parmigianino. This painting is also very unrealistic. The figure of the virgin Mary is very disproportional. Her huge thighs and lower body don't match with the small head, skinny fingers, and a long neck. This figure seems to be in a sitting position, but the viewer can see no chair underneath her, which makes her pose look unrealistic and impossible. The sleeping baby in her arms, looks too big too be a baby when compared to the other figures also in the painting. In the right corner of the painting, there is a unrealistically small figure of a man holding a scroll. His size does not go with the scale of proportions that was used in the earlier Renaissance times to make a painting look more proportional, in relationship to the other figures in the painting.
Unlike "Entombment", the "Madonna with the Long Neck" painting is made of a bigger variety of colors and the expressions on the peoples faces look happy. Another thing different about this painting from the first one, is that it has a background scene. There are curtains, stairs and a white column. Even though this column is not holding up anything, the viewer can imagine that this strange composition is located inside a building, perhaps in a temple of some sort. One last thing that I noticed in "Madonna with the Long Neck" that is different from "Entombment" is the composition of the figures. All of the people, besides the little man in the background, have been painted bunched up together on the right side of Madonna looking at the baby. Madonna, who is in the center of the painting, is also looking down, making the child be the focal point. The other side of the painting just shows us the background and not much human activity. This is different from the busy looking scattered composition of the "Entombment", which has no focal point because everyone seems to be looking into different directions.
Both of the paintings have similarities and differences between them, but they are perfect examples of the Mannerist style. They are very unrealistic, and contain figures in humanly impossible poses with disproportional bodies. I think that this style of painting is very interesting. It makes the viewer stop, look at it, and try to figure out what about the painting is different and what is wrong with the way these people are painted.

Art of the Early and High Renaissance Periods

When comparing artworks from the Early Renaissance period with the High Renaissance period, we can see many similarities and differences in the works done by artists of each of these time periods. The two works of art that I will compare and analyze are, the portraits of Federico da Montefeltro and his wife Battista Sforza, c. 1474, and the portraits of Agnelo Doni and Maddalena Strozzi, c. 1506. Both of the paintings were done in oil on wood panels. 

The portraits of Federico da Montefeltro and Battista Sforza were made by an Italian artist, Piero della Francesca. "The small panels resemble Flemish painting in their detail and luminosity, their record of surfaces and textures,  and their vast landscapes." (p. 218 Stockstad) We can see that, because of the traditional Italian fashion lasting during the Early Renaissance period, the figures are portrayed in a strict profile view. This makes the figures look emotionless and be psychologically disengaging with the viewer. Another reason for the profile view, was to show the accurate recording of Federico's likeness without emphasizing the two scars which were located on the right side of his face.  Piero emphasized the basic geometry of the forms. This makes the people in the portraits look very flat and not very realistic. Dressed in their most elegant fashion, the forms are silhouetted against a scenic  landscape of hills around Urbino.  
The portraits of Agnelo Doni and Maddalena Strozzi, painted by Rafael, were done during the High Renaissance period. They are painted in a 3/4 view instead of a strict profile view of the face and body. This enables the viewer to almost "see" into the souls of the two subjects.  You can tell that these people have authority and come from very powerful families, but at the same time, there are calm emotions across their faces that look like sadness. Rafael, unlike Piero, had made his portraits look more natural and realistic due to the great impact on realism during the High Italian Renaissance period. You can see how his painting is more 3 dimensional in the way Agnelo's and Maddalena's arms are painted at an angle rather than strictly up and down like that of  Federico and Battista.
Despite their many differences, there are also some similarities between the portraits made by two artists from different time periods. In both works, the portraits of Federico da Montefeltro and Battista Sforza, and the portraits of Agnelo Doni and Maddalena Strozzi, the hills and other background scenery seem to be dissolving into the distance. This illusion has been achieved through the use of an atmospheric perspective in the painting of the two portraits. The people in both artworks look like they are found higher in the sky than the hills behind them. Another similarity between the two artworks is the clothing. Both artist had made an emphasis on the fashionable clothing of their subjects adding jewelry on the ladies and hats on the men. 
I think that you can see dynamic unity in both of the artworks. From the many hills in Piero's paintings, to the clouds and angular arm positions in Raphael's paintings, each image feel unified and complete by itself.