Art Appreciation DB 7

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

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Introduction

Artworks have been used to assert a leader’s power and influence

Highlight their right to rule

Portrayed in an idealized way

Project an image of military strength

Propaganda tool

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Sometimes leaders claim their authority has been granted by the gods

They are often dressed in elaborate clothing, placed centrally in the composition, depicted larger than other figures, and positioned so that the viewer looks up at them

Such images are also potentially revealing of what a society might be looking for, or expecting, from its leader

Iconic Portraiture of Leaders

Artists have developed ways to show leaders with power and authority

Portraits vary in accuracy

May instead convey qualities the leader wants to be perceived to embody

Iconic portraits are recognizable worldwide

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

What image comes to mind when you think of a great leader?

The portraits of Queen Elizabeth I, George Washington, and Napoleon Bonaparte have become iconic—recognizable worldwide for so strikingly depicting the historical impact of the leaders they represent (see Gateways to Art pp.627-629)

Consider whether there is a difference in the way the woman is portrayed and what the image suggests about her power

Consider the way the images of male leadership convey their qualities as rulers

Artwork: Jean-Antoine Houdon, George Washington

4.6.1 Jean-Antoine Houdon, George

Washington, 1788–92. Marble, height 6’2”. Virginia State Capitol, Richmond, Virginia

Jean-Antoine Houdon, George Washington

Certain elements from ancient sculpture: white marble, contrapposto stance

Bundle of rods (fasces), represent the 13 US colonies, bound in unity

Washington’s gaze has become iconic; repeated in other works

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Washington requested that Jean-Antoine Houdon (1741–1828), one of the most respected sculptors of contemporary figures, carve a portrait of him in his military uniform

Fasces (a bundle of wooden rods), were a symbol of power in ancient Rome

Washington is shown with his sword set aside and his cape removed

He resigned from the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army after the Revolutionary War (1775–83) and returned to his farm (a plow is behind him in this sculpture), before being appointed America’s first president in 1789

His gaze is directed slightly to the left, upward, and into the distance

Artwork: David, Napoleon Crossing the Alps

4.6.2 Jacques-Louis David, Napoleon Crossing the Alps (or Bonaparte Crossing the St. Bernard Pass, 20 May, 1800), 1801. Oil on canvas, 8’9¼” × 7’3¾”. Châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon, Versailles, France

David, Napoleon Crossing the Alps

Napoleon used portraits as propaganda

His favorite artist memorializes a real event; glamorizes the moment

Military pose on horseback

Napoleon masters both the horse and the powerful elements of nature

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

During his reign as emperor of France, from 1804 to 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) had painters create hundreds of portraits of him in an effort to persuade the French people of his leadership skills, military might, and humanitarian efforts

In Napoleon Crossing the Alps, David displays the powerful force of nature, a characteristic of Romanticism, and the French leader’s ability to withstand the wind and snow as he leads his troops

Napoleon and his men victoriously crossed the dangerous Alpine pass of St. Bernard to enter and eventually conquer Italy

Napoleon’s name is carved into the rock (“Bonaparte”), above the names of two earlier military leaders— the great Carthaginian general Hannibal and the Holy Roman Emperor Karolus Magnus, also known as Charlemagne—who had crossed the same treacherous path

Portal Artwork: Marcus Aurelius

3.1.37 Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, c. 175 CE, Rome, Italy. Height 11'6".

David borrowed the military pose of a ruler atop a horse from the equestrian monument tradition, popular in portraits of the emperors of ancient Rome.

Artwork: Wiley, Napoleon Leading the Army[…]

4.6.3a Kehinde Wiley, Napoleon Leading the Army over the Alps, 2005. Oil on canvas, 9 × 9'. Brooklyn Museum, New York

4.6.3b Kehinde Wiley, Napoleon Leading the Army over the Alps, detail of sperm in the background

Wiley, Napoleon Leading the Army[…]

Napoleon has been supplanted by an African American man wearing camouflage and contemporary accessories

Background removes specific place and time

Makes viewer question stereotypes of culture, race, and masculinity

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Kehinde Wiley (b. 1977) is an African American artist who noticed that the paintings in his local museum rarely showed dark-skinned figures.

“When I watch television or participate in the media culture in America, sometimes the way that I’ve seen black people being portrayed in this country feels very strange and exotic because it has nothing to do with the life that I’ve lived or the people I’ve known.”

Wiley found strangers on the street to model for his portraits, asking them to wear their own clothing but mimic the poses of sitters in famous artworks.

The tiny white sperm painted onto the luxurious background (4.6.3b) somewhat mockingly highlight how royal portraits have been designed to convey strength through masculinity.

Adding to the names of earlier leaders on the rocks beneath the man and horse, Wiley has carved the name “Williams,” a typical African American name, and, perhaps, the name of this sitter.

Female Rulers

Interested in conveying power, but often in a different form than male counterparts

Piety

Sacrifice

Motherhood

Support of husbands

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Artwork: Theodora and Attendants

4.6.4 Theodora and Attendants, c. 547 CE. Mosaic. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy

Theodora and Attendants

Theodora carries jeweled chalice of wine

Theodora would not have been permitted to enter this space; women only allowed on second story

Mosaic of Emperor Justinian hangs across the apse

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Colored glass mosaic in the Church of San Vitale, in Ravenna, Italy

Sixth-century depiction of the Byzantine empress Theodora (500–548 CE)

Three Magi on the hem of the empress’s stunning purple robe

The figures in the image are layered so that their repetition creates a sense of movement toward the altar

Theodora not permitted to enter this space—not only because she was a woman, but also because she was from the lower classes, having been an actress and a prostitute when she met her husband, Emperor Justinian.

As a woman, even a royal one, she was allowed only in the courtyard of the church, or on the second-story balcony surrounding the nave.

The mosaic acknowledges these gender restrictions by situating Theodora outdoors, as shown by the green grass, canopies, and fountain.

Portal Artwork: Mosaic depicting Emperor Justinian

3.2.10 Emperor Justinian, c. 547, glass mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy

Compare the mosaic of Emperor Justinian, placed opposite Theodora’s in the apse of the same church.

Artwork: Maya Lintel showing Shield Jaguar and Lady Xoc

4.6.5 Maya lintel showing Shield Jaguar and Lady Xoc, c. 725 CE. Limestone, 43 × 30¾ × 2⅜”. British Museum, London, England

Maya Lintel showing Shield Jaguar and Lady Xoc

Depicts a bloodletting ritual

Lady Xoc kneels before her husband; thorned rope pulled through her tongue

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Although Lady Xoc is shown as clearly subordinate to Shield Jaguar, her elaborate costume, role in the ritual, and the fact that this bloodletting scene was imitated in artworks of later generations, highlight that she too was a person of importance

Artwork: Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters

4.6.6 The Egyptian king Akhenaten, his queen Nefertiti, and three daughters, c. 1353–1335 BCE. Limestone, height 12¼”. Ägyptisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Germany

Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and three daughters

Size of Nefertiti indicates her importance

Although previous pharaohs worshiped many gods, Akhenaten recognized only the sun god Aten

Sun god prominent; rays suggest the sun god’s support of the royal family

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

The ancient Egyptians believed their kings, known as pharaohs, were descended from the gods

Akhenaten ruled in the fourteenth century BCE

His wife and trusted adviser Nefertiti opposite him, and their three daughters cradled on their laps

The flames at the end of the rays are small hands, some holding an ankh, the character that symbolizes life in ancient Egyptian writing

Artwork: George Gower, Elizabeth I

4.6.7 George Gower, Elizabeth I (The Armada Portrait), 1588. Oil on panel, 41¼ × 52⅜”. Woburn Abbey,

Bedfordshire, England

George Gower, Elizabeth I

Commemorates England’s defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 during Elizabeth I’s reign

Large pearl over her genitals: chastity

Hand on globe: England’s naval might

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Elizabeth I ruled from 1558 until her death in 1603

Despite obstacles (inheriting a religiously divided country, poor economy, born the illegitimate child of Henry VIII), Elizabeth’s reign was relatively peaceful, culturally rich, and saw England united under Protestantism

As an unmarried woman, she risked being seen as weak and unable to rule; however, through art she was able to promote her chastity as evidence of her commitment first and foremost to her country

The Spanish Armada, a fleet of more than a hundred ships, was commanded by Philip II, whose one-time marriage proposal Elizabeth had rejected

Artwork: Vigée Le Brun, Marie Antoinette and Her Children

4.6.8 Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, Marie Antoinette and Her Children, 1787. Oil on canvas, 9’½ × 7’⅝". Musée National du Chateau de Versailles, France

Vigée Le Brun, Marie Antoinette and […]

Queen had become symbol of royal families extravagance; portrait made to alter reputation

Shown as loving and loved mother

Portrait did not change the people’s mind

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

In late eighteenth-century France, Queen Marie Antoinette (1755–1793), the wife of King Louis XVI, had become a symbol of the royal family’s extravagance.

While the French state suffered financial strain and the people went hungry, Marie Antoinette wore expensive clothes and jewels and was given her own chateau, or palace, which she decorated lavishly.

Her location in the palace shows her status as queen.

Her wardrobe is purposely neither overly revealing nor lacking in French style and taste, which had been a criticism of previous portraits.

Suggests sorrow over the recent loss of her youngest daughter, for whom the empty cradle was intended.

It was removed from public display shortly after being exhibited in 1788, for fear that it would be attacked. The following year, the French Revolution began.

Three years later, in 1792, the monarchy was overthrown, and in 1793 Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were beheaded.

Portal Artwork: Hyacinthe Rigaud, Louis XIV

3.6.28 Hyacinthe Rigaud, Louis XIV, 1701. Oil on canvas, 9'1" × 6’4¾". Musée du Louvre, Paris, France

Louis XIV was Marie Antoinette’s great-great grandfather through marriage. Here he stands before the Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, the same location in which Marie Antoinette posed in her portrait.

Art Used by Rulers to Regulate Society

Strong leaders understand the power of art as a tool for propaganda

Convey their messages and influence people to obey their laws

Often shows support given to ruler by the gods

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Artwork: Stela of Hammurabi

4.6.9 Stela of Hammurabi, c. 1792–1750 BCE. Diorite, 88⅝ × 25⅝”. Musée du Louvre, Paris, France

Stela of Hammurabi

King Hammurabi of Babylon and his code of law, 1790 bce

Set of written statues

Carved in cuneiform into a stela

“An eye for an eye”

Top scene shows Hammurabi’s power given by the gods

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Hammurabi’s laws were less even-handed when they pertained to people with low status, such as slaves, freedmen, and women

If a woman’s husband suspected her of adultery, but had no proof, she was required to jump into the river; If she survived, she was deemed innocent

In the scene at the top of the stela, Shamash, the god of justice and the sun god, is enthroned; he reaches toward Hammurabi and hands him rings and a scepter, symbols of power, as he dictates to the king the laws he will implement

Portal Artwork: Stela of Naram-Sin

4.2.7 Stela of Naram-Sin, c. 2254–2218 bce. Pink sandstone, 6'7" × 3'5". Musée du Louvre, Paris, France

Near Eastern art often showed a god giving power to a ruler.

Akkadian ruler Naran-Sin is being given his power for a sun god.

Artwork: Remnants of colossal statue of Constantine

4.6.10 Remnants of colossal statue of Constantine the Great, 325–26 CE. Marble, height of head 8’6”. Palazzo dei Conservatori,

Rome, Italy

Remnants of colossal statue of Constantine

Constantine the Great was the first Christian Roman emperor

Colossal statue enforces his power

Pagan/Christian elements

Pose similar to that of Jupiter

Held orb with Christian cross

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Constantine the Great ruled part of the Roman Empire from 306 ce and was sole emperor from 324 until his death in 337

A colossal marble-and-bronze statue of the emperor seated on a throne was made in 325 to be placed in a basilica in the center of Rome

Only parts of the statue survive, but the head alone is more than 8 feet tall

Constantine’s gaze signifies the power he derived from God to rule over Roman Empire

Ancient Rome: Capital of an Empire

To find out more about how such emperors as Constantine demonstrated their power through the art and architecture they commissioned in Rome, watch:

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Video:

Artwork: Mao Zedong’s portrait

4.6.11 Mao Zedong’s portrait. The Gate of Heavenly Peace, Tiananmen (south entrance to the old Forbidden City), Beijing, China

Mao Zedong’s portrait

Led Communist Party to power (1949); founded People’s Republic of China

Large portrait hung at Tiananmen

Continued installment: many copies have replaced it over the years

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Tiananmen, the site of many important political and cultural events in China’s history, was built in the fifteenth century as a gateway to the Forbidden City, the home of the Chinese emperors for centuries

The painting has been replaced with near-identical portraits almost yearly

When Mao died in 1976, the large oil painting at Tiananmen was replaced temporarily with a black-and-white photograph to signify China’s mourning

The continued installation of Mao’s portrait in Tiananmen Square is used by today’s Chinese leaders to maintain the outward expression of Communist control

It is a powerful national symbol, even though his legacy remains controversial

Artwork: Andy Warhol, Mao

4.6.12 Andy Warhol, Mao, 1973. Synthetic polymer paint and silkscreen ink on canvas, 14' 8⅜" × 11' 4½". Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois

Andy Warhol, Mao

Pose the same as official portrait

Altered with color and texture

Silkscreen printing mimics the reproduction of Mao’s image in China

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

The process of silkscreen printing and the large quantity of duplicates created by Warhol emphasize the manufacturing of Mao’s image and its similarity to the commercialism of capitalist Western society.

In one sense, Warhol continues to venerate the image; in another, he highlights its status as a reproduction, thereby lessening its power.

Artwork: Toppling of Saddam Hussein statue

4.6.13 Toppling of Saddam Hussein statue, April 9, 2003. Baghdad, Iraq

Toppling of Saddam Hussein statue

39-ft-tall statue placed in central square of Baghdad in 2002

In 2003, the US invaded Iraq and removed Hussein from power

Statue destroyed and taken down by Iraqis

US soldiers controversially covered head with American flag

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Saddam Hussein (1937–2006), ruler of Iraq from 1979 to 2003.

Hussein became the president of Iraq in 1979, after a militaristic takeover.

He was a brutal leader, and tens of thousands of citizens were killed under his regime.

Prior to his overthrow, a colossal, 39-foot- tall, statue of Saddam was placed in the central square of the capital city Baghdad in April 2002, to mark the ruler’s sixty-fifth birthday.

Unlike many other iconic portraits, it is the image of the destruction of the statue of Saddam Hussein that has become better known than the sculpture itself.

One Iraqi ties a rope around its neck, and another beats it with a sledgehammer. At one point, US soldiers cover its head with an American flag, and use a crane to help tear down the figure.

Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death by an Iraqi court and executed in 2006.

The Portrayal of Power

Watch the following videos to learn more about how rulers have sought to express their power through art, and how artists have chosen to portray the rulers of their time:

The Pyramids of Giza

“The Abode of Paradise”: The Taj Mahal

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

The Portrayal of Power (contd.)

Watch the following videos to learn more about how rulers have sought to express their power through art, and how artists have chosen to portray the rulers of their time:

Diego Velázquez: Las Meninas

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Third Edition, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Video:

Chapter 4.6 Copyright Information

This concludes the PowerPoint slide set for Chapter 4.6

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts

Third Edition

By Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, and M. Kathryn Shields

PowerPoints developed by CreativeMyndz Multimedia Studios

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers

Picture Credits for Chapter 4.6

4.6.2 Photo RMN-Grand Palais (Château de Versailles)/Franck Raux

4.6.3a Brooklyn Museum, Partial gift of Suzi and Andrew Booke Cohen in memory of Ilene R. Booke and in honor of Arnold L. Lehman, Mary Smith Dorward Fund, and William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund , 2015.53. © 2005 Kehinde Wiley. Used by permission

4.6.3b Brooklyn Museum, Partial gift of Suzi and Andrew Booke Cohen in memory of Ilene R. Booke and in honor of Arnold L. Lehman, Mary Smith Dorward Fund, and William K. Jacobs, Jr. Fund , 2015.53. © 2005 Kehinde Wiley. Used by permission

4.6.4 Cameraphoto/Scala, Florence

4.6.5 Photo Trustees of the British Museum, London

4.6.6 Ä̈gyptisches Museum, Staatliche Museen, Berlin

4.6.7 akg-images

4.6.8 Musée National du Château de Versailles

4.6.9 Musée du Louvre, Paris

4.6.12 The Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois/ Mr. and Mrs. Frank G. Logan Purchase Prize and Wilson L. Mead

4.6.13 Gilles Bassignac/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

PowerPoints developed by CreativeMyndz Multimedia Studios

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Chapter 4.6 Art of Political Leaders and Rulers